The Traveler Rising
by Icy Heart. Beautiful Soul
Summary: (Prequel to The Traveler.) How could things have gone so wrong? Everyone knows Bloodclan's past is riddled with tragedy and pain, right on down to how its leader came to power. Now it's time to get an inside look at just how bad Bloodclan and its cats were. Come and see how Scourge, Bone, Timber, and blood could teach Ice to be so cold.
1. How It All Started

**Warning: This is a prequel to the existing story** **The Traveler** **. If you haven't read the first story don't want to ruin it for yourself, I suggest you go read that one first. If you don't read it, this entire story is going to be a giant spoiler for you. If you are okay with that, than keep reading. ;)**

(Tigerclaw's POV)

A screech of pain echoed through the trees. I froze mid step. The mouse I had been stalking jumped at the sound and bolted. "Mouse dung," I hissed and leaped after it. My pounce missed as the little morsel skittered away and down a hole. I almost had it. I glanced over my shoulder towards where the sound came from. Stupid noise made me miss.

"Whoever did that is going to regret it," I growled. I slipped through the undergrowth in the direction of the voice. I passed through a patch of sunlight into a shady part of the forest.

"Oh no. What have I done? This wasn't how things were supposed to happen." I froze as a voice drifted through the trees. It sounded familiar, but it wasn't someone from Thunderclan. Careful with my paw placement, I worked my way around a large maple until I could glance past it at a small clearing.

It was Clawface. His sides were scored with fresh scratches and drying blood. A Shadowclan cat in Thunderclan territory. Beneath him was the still body of a cat. A tortoiseshell and white she cat. I felt my mood lift. Perfect. Spottedleaf was always annoying to have around camp. She was always trotting after that little fool, Firepaw. And he just ate it up. Now, she was out of the way and Bluestar will respect me all the more for trying to save her.

I relished the feeling of my claws sliding out of their sheathes. This was going to be fun. I stalked forward, keeping to the shadows.

As I got closer, his words became clearer and louder. "Stupid medicine cat," he hissed. "You can't have kits. Now I have to deal with this thing. I can't kill a kit."

What? My ears pricked at the word kit. I surged forward from the shadow at him. "What the-" Clawface started as he saw me. Before he could finish that sentence, I had bowled him over and held him down with one paw on his neck. He gasped as my long claws poked through his skin.

I looked over from his frightened face to the stone like body of Spottedleaf. Wriggling a little ways away from her was a small white kit with tortoiseshell legs. Next to it lay two wet little figures; one ginger, one brown. Neither of them were moving.

"She.. she… I didn't know she had kits. I-" Clawface sputtered. His feeble attempts to make up for what he had done annoyed me.

"Shut up," I growled. It had only taken a moment to realize what had happened. So that's what she had been hiding. I could tell by the nervous way she had been talking lately that she had been keeping something from everyone, but this? The fool, Clawface must have killed her when she was on her own. Must have thought getting rid of our medicine cat would have made Thunderclan weak against attack. I wished I had thought of that myself. The only thing he didn't see coming was that she was out here on her own to give birth. Even he wasn't heartless enough to kill a kit.

I pressed my paw down harder on his neck. It felt good to watch him begin to gasp for breath. Then I removed my paw. His eyes widened in surprise as he scrambled up and away from me. He eyed me closely. "You... You're letting me go?"

I felt a smile begin to form on my lips. I had an idea. A perfect idea. This day just kept getting better. He shrank back at the sight of my smile. Good. He should be afraid. "Oh, I'm letting you go." I said the words nice and slow. Making sure each one sounded honest. He seemed to relax a little at my words. "On one condition."

His body tensed back up again. "What do you want?"

"The kit." I let my tail flick over to the one surviving kit. "I'll take care of it. You won't have to worry about taking care of it yourself. In return, nobody knows about what happened here. You don't tell anyone about the kit, I won't mention what you did."

He glared at me. Confusion clouded his eyes. He didn't trust me. "You're not going to tell your clan mates?" I shook my head. "Why," he asked.

"Because I said so," I growled. Stupid cat. He didn't need to know why. "And honestly, I'm your only hope, so I suggest taking the deal before I kill you myself."

Clawface jerked in surprise. "Fine," he snorted. "Have it." He bounded away towards the Shadowclan border. I could see him looking over his shoulder until the trees blocked my line of sight. Fool.

I turned and walked past Spottedleaf towards the kit. The little thing was mewling pathetically. It crawled around on tiny paws in search of its mother. The stupid little kit didn't even realize it was going the wrong way. I reached forward with a paw and gave it a little nudge.

It gave a tiny cry as the force of my paw sent it rolling over onto its back. I watched as it rubbed its face with a paw and opened its eyes. Forest green. I knew it. Firepaw's kit. I bet he doesn't even know.

It looked around it with wide, eyes. A breeze shifted through the trees and moved the leaves enough to let a patch of sunlight brighten up the forest floor. Mesmerized, the kit stared up at the sunlight. With a tiny paw, it reached up towards the light. A little claw flashed as it unsheathed its claws. I watched as it reached, as if it could slash open the sky. It was almost...

Stupid kit. I shook myself off to clear my head. I picked the thing up by the scruff and started toward the twoleg place, where I knew the perfect cat to raise her would be waiting for me. She'd probably be excited. I just hoped this plan works.

Clawface was mouse brained to think he wouldn't pay for trying to weaken Thunderclan, but I'd make it discrete. Nobody would know what exactly happened. I'd just have to bury the stillborn kits on my way back and be careful not to leave any of my scent behind.

 **I'm back, fellow Freaks and Geeks! Feels like it's been forever. I had a little extra time on my hands and really wanted to get started on this, plus I don't know when I'll have another chance to work on this, so it may be a while until the next update.**

 **But it's HERE, and this is how it all started! To go with this new story, I'm going to make some changes to my messages to you guys. First of all, I'm setting a goal on reviews. The Traveler got 27 reviews total, so I want to get to 40 with this story. Secondly, I'm going to be asking you readers a question (probably just yes or no questions) on how to make my stories better. That doesn't mean just reviewing about the question though. I still want real reviews with your opinions and input on the story please. ;)**

 **This chapter's question is, are my chapters too long? I'm at almost 2,000 words per chapter usually. Would it be easier to brake it up into more chapters, or do you like them the way they are?**


	2. Mother and Father

**Thank you sooooo much SilverDragonRanger09 for the review. Looks like you're the first one for this story to!**

 **Next chapter is here. I don't think anyone's reading my little notes anymore. :( If you are, tell me... or read the bottom message for a little secrete. ;)**

(Iceshadow's (aka Ice's) POV)

"Ice, get back here! You know your father will be here soon. You don't need to sit up on that fence while you wait." I looked back to see the worry in Sasha's eyes. She was always so overprotective.

"All right, Mother," I called back. I looked over the fence at the trees one last time. If only he was already here. Using my claws, I slid down the wooden fence and landed on my tail at the bottom. A little squeak escaped my lips at the sudden drop.

"Ice," Sasha shouted and pelted toward me. Before I could react, she had scooped me up and pulled me away. She put me down and started licking me frantically. "Are you all right? Are you hurt?"

"Stop it Mama! I'm fine." Why did she always have to worry so much? "Don't be such a scaredy mouse." Mother was always a scaredy mouse, though. She made me hide in the flowers when her twoleg came out because she was afraid he might take me away. She never wanted me to be on the fence because she was afraid I'd fall. She didn't even want me talking to other cats because she was afraid they might hurt me.

"If you weren't always such a reckless she kit like this, I wouldn't have to be a scaredy mouse," she purred and pulled away from her licking.

"I'm going to be a warrior, like father! I can't be afraid of anything," I mewed and settled into a crouch. "I'm not little any more." With that said, I pounced on top of mother.

She played along with me, dropping to the ground. "Oh no! The big Shadowclan kit has me," she mewed.

"Warrior," I called, scrabbling to keep from falling off her. Sure, I was only four moons old, but father said I'd be a warrior soon. Very soon. And I'd be the greatest warrior ever trained.

"That's right," a familiar, deep meow drifted to where we were playing. "You are a warrior, and don't let anyone else tell you different."

"FATHER!" I couldn't keep the delight out of my voice. With one good leap, I had left Sasha far behind me and was halfway to the fence.  
"Tigerclaw," Sasha breathed and stood up. He nodded and leaped to the ground.

With all my might, I jumped into him. "Oof," he groaned. "You have gotten stronger since last time I saw you."

"You know it," I giggled. "Tell me about the clans again. Tell me about that fox heart Fireheart. Have you gotten rid of him yet?"

"No little one," he soothed. "I haven't gotten rid of him yet, but I will. Enough of that though. Come on over the fence. I brought something for you." I felt my eyes widen at the thought of a present. What could it be? Is he going to introduce me to his clan? I started bouncing on the tips of my paws at the thought.

"You're taking her out again?" Sasha's eyes grew wide with worry. I felt her tail slip around me protectively.

"Mother," I complained.

Tigerclaw slipped his tail around Sasha's shoulders. "It's all right. I'll be with her, and I won't let anything happen. I promise." He nuzzled her gently. I could see her melt at his touch. Her tail moved away from me.

"OK," she said. "I trust you to bring her home safely." He nodded again. There was a spark of warmth in both their eyes as the pulled away.

Tigerclaw turned to me. "Ready to go?"

"Of course," I squealed. He took off towards the fence, full pelt. I struggled to keep up with him. Carefully, I scrambled up and over the fence to the ground.

"Look what I brought you," Tigerclaw said, shoving something warm and fuzzy towards me. It was a mouse.

"Wow," I breathed. "Just like you eat, right father?"

"Yes," he purred. "Go ahead. Take a bite." As soon as he said it, I tore into the mouse. Like a warrior. He laughed as I pulled away to chew, blood streaked across my white muzzle. It was so good! It was much better than that twoleg food mother smuggled me out of her twoleg's nest. If only Sasha could hunt. "I'm glad you like it." His purr broke through my thoughts. "Because you're going to learn how to hunt them."

I felt my jaw drop. My body buzzed with excitement. Yes! My first lesson on how to be a warrior. "Really?"

"Really," he said. He twitched his tail at me, beckoning me deeper into the woods. "If you're going to be the greatest warrior possible, you need to learn how to catch your own food."

 **Ready for that secrete? I probably shouldn't be telling you this, but... I have a story called** **The Kits** **. For all you readers that wanted the sequel first, this is a big clue about what happens in it. BIG CLUE. Actually, it's the sequel's sequel. ;)**

 **Question for the chapter: Do I use too many big words? My family says I have a big vocabulary. They also say it makes it hard to understand what I mean when they have to get a dictionary for every other conversation. Am I really that bad?**


	3. Tomorrow

**Isn't Ice an adorable little rascal? This chapter is a short one for me, but I don't think it needed to be longer.**

"Got you, you filthy fox," I hissed as father pretended to struggle under me. It was dark now in Sasha's yard. The stars shone down on us as we play fought. I had caught two mice right after Tigerclaw showed me how to hunt. He had said I was a fast learner. I think he's proud of me.

"Oh no you don't," he hissed. A giant paw shot out, claws sheathed. He hit me square in the shoulder and I went tumbling off

"Hey," I said angrily. My claws gripped into his pelt as I jumped back on. "You won't get rid of me that easily," I hissed.

"Alright you two. That's enough," Sasha but in. Before I knew it, I was swinging through the air by the scruff of my neck. "If I didn't know better, Tigerclaw, I'd think you were Ice's litter mate rather than her father," she mumbled around my white fur.

"Let me go, Mother," I begged. I pumped my legs back and forth to get her to drop me. It was useless to struggle, but I didn't know that. I was just a kit, after all. A kit that wanted to be with her father. "I wanna keep playing."

"All right, Ice," she sighed. She lowered me down to the ground. Before I could run back to father, though, her tail snaked around me and held me. "But you're staying right here."

A growl tore through my throat. "You said-"

"Don't you growl at me, Ice!" She had that look in her eyes, daring me to say another word. I clamped my mouth shut. The accusation died before I could even get it out. "I said all right to letting you down. I didn't say you could play. Besides, it's time for you to go to sleep."

Father brushed up against her. "Your mother is right, Ice. We had a busy day and you must be exhausted. I promise I'll see you again tomorrow."

All the anger rushed out of me. In its place came excitement. Seeing father two days in a row! It was too good to be true. He had never done that before. "Really!"

Sasha sighed. "Now look what you did. I'll never get her to sleep now."

"Sorry about that," he purred. He watched as mother picked me up by the scruff and set me down in my nest under the flowers. I didn't struggle one bit.

"Good night, Ice," she whispered. A little yawn escaped me. My paws felt heavy as I turned on the moss to get comfortable. Maybe I was tired. "May you have sweet dreams, tonight, tomorrow, and…"

"Forever," I finished for her, curling up into a tight ball. Everything went black as my eyes drifted closed. Black and silent.

"You can't do that, Tigeclaw! She's just a kit. She's not ready." My ears twitched as the sound of mother's voice woke me. Mother and father were talking about me? I tried to stay still. Look like I was sleeping in case they looked my way.

"Nonsense, Sasha," Tigerclaw's meow was forceful. "I know what I saw today. Four moons old and she could already take down two mice just moments after learning the hunter's crouch. They were just as big as her!"

"But Bloodclan?" Sasha sounded angry…. and scared. "I've heard enough stories about them to know they're bad news. What if something happens to her?" I never heard mother sound scared like that. It wasn't like the worry in her voice when I tried to climb the fence. No. This voice gave me the shivers for her. And what was Bloodclan? I thought father was from Thunderclan?

"She's strong. A survivor. Nothing will happen to her. Don't you see, Sasha? They're just the clan to train her. To make her better than she already is. She'll be a warrior like no other!" Father's words had a soothing effect on mother, but she still seemed apprehensive.

"She's still so young…. Are you sure?"

"Positive." There was a shuffling sound. He was probably standing up. Sasha said nothing more. "It's settled then. At the crack of dawn tomorrow, Ice will be handed over to her new clan."

 **Ok. I can tell by the jump in readers on my story** **The Kits** **that people are reading my little messages. That makes me feel a little better. And now that I know at least some of you are reading, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE REVIEW! ANSWER THE CHAPTER QUESTIONS TO! I wan't to make this story better for you guys. Honestly... I don't even know if you like my story at all.**

 **Question of the chapter: Does Ice seem like a believable kit?**

 **No winky face today. Too depressed about almost no reviews.**


	4. Warrior?

**I'm so sorry everyone! There's no excuse for not putting this chapter out earlier. No wonder nobody was reviewing. Bad Icy! Anyway, now that this chapter is out, I hope you can forgive me for being so whiny in the last chapter. ;) The winks are back.**

I don't know how I could have fallen asleep after hearing my parents conversation, but I must have because the next thing I knew I was swinging by my scruff in mother's jaws. She was running through some twoleg streets with Tigerclaw visible just ahead of us. My claws jutted out in excitement. We were out of the fence! I was finally seeing what was just beyond the garden fence. Something other than the forest trees. Then it dawned on me. Father had said he was taking me to the clan. Why weren't we going to the forest? "Mother, where are we going?"

She remained silent. Probably because she had a mouth full of my fur. Tigerclaw's ears swiveled at the sound of my voice. He looked back at us. "Today's the day, Ice. Ready to meet your new clanmates?"

My excitement returned. "Yes! Of course I'm ready." The confusion nagged at me from the back of my mind, but I ignored it. I was going to be a Warrior!

We made our way through a maze of twists and turning alleyways. I could hardly keep track of the path we took, and the dark of the early dawn didn't help one bit.

We turned a corner and mother jerked to a stop. The alley ended. Sitting on a twoleg rubbish holder were two cats sharing tongues. One was black and white, and huge. The other small and jet black, with a single white paw. They both wore collars studded with teeth. My eyes seemed glued to the teeth. Whether it was curiosity or awe at the power it took to get those teeth, I don't know. I just couldn't stop looking.

The bigger of the two hissed as we approached. Cats appeared all around us at the sound of his warning. They stood on ledges on the walls above us. They slid out from the rubbish heaps behind us. Many of them wore collars with teeth. All of them were ragged.l We were surrounded.

Mother stiffened and dropped me.

"How dare you enter into Bloodclan territory," the black and white tom screeched. While the big cat bristled, the little cat looked calmly at us. Somehow, that just made him more terrifying.

"We have come peacefully," father said with his head held high. "With a proposition that may just help us both." Shaking, I looked up at him as he stood there, unafraid. How could he be so brave? I wanted to be just like him.

I looked back to see the black cat run a paw over his mouth. The big tom lurched forward. His paws clicked as his claws hit stone. No. Not claws. Teeth. "How dare you," he growled, dropping into a pouncing stance. Tigerclaw didn't even flinch. I tried staying still, despite my shaking legs. Tried not to run to mother, who at this moment was trying to rap her tail around me.

"Enough, Bone. Let's see what these cats have to offer," the black tom said, placing his paw back down. I felt myself relax.

"But Scourge-" the big cat, Bone, started. Scourge cut him off.

"I said, let's hear what they have to say," Scourge's eyes narrowed menacingly. I shivered. Bone snorted defiantly, but walked back to Scourge and grumpily sat down.

Father dipped his head toward the little black cat. "Thank you for hearing me out."

Scourge looked back down at his claws with a bored expression. The were covered in teeth like Bone's. "Don't bother thanking me," he said in a blank voice. "I'm only interested in what you have to offer me. Then I'll decide if I'll kill you three."

I heard mother gulp. This cat could sure talk big. I could see Tigerclaw's tail tip twitch slightly in amusement. "I have a feeling you won't want to kill us," he said confidently and stood up. "I come with a proposition. One that will hopefully unite us as allies in the future," he trailed off. He had raised his voice so that all the cats surrounding us could hear. "I, Tigerclaw of Thunderclan, offer Bloodclan my own daughter, Ice."

Mother shifted behind me. I could have sworn I heard her whimper. Murmurs of surprise and confusion broke out among the surrounding cats. Bone looked thoroughly surprised. Scourge's eyes flashed. "Explain yourself," he meowed. There was an edge to his voice.

"Think about it," father said, meeting Scourge's gaze. "All of you have started learning your skills as adults. But if you were to train kits, then wouldn't those that survive the training be stronger? Those that grow to adulthood and make up Bloodclan would be immensely stronger than adults with no experience or training. Bloodclan would be even more powerful. And to help start the strengthening of Bloodclan, I wish to have my kit join you." He twitched his tail. Motioning me forward. I stepped up to stand beside him, forcing my body to stop shaking. This was it, wasn't it? This was when I'd join a clan.

Hisses broke out around us. Crying out accusations of tricks and deceit. I forced myself to hold my head high as Scourge looked down at us with icy narrowed eyes.

Then Scourge did something that made everyone grew quiet. He jumped down from the rubbish container and walked towards me. He stopped a few tail lengths away and beckoned me over with a nod of his head. "Come here, little kit."

There was a voice in my head screaming, 'RUN! Get away!' With every fiber of my being, I wanted to get away. But I didn't. I had to be brave. Brave like a warrior. That tiny cat was bad and I knew it, but he wasn't much bigger than me. Who was to saw that he was stronger than me? He had a lot of cats with him that I knew I was afraid of, but I wasn't afraid of him. Not him alone at least.

I stepped forward, fighting the fear inside. Tigerclaw watched me go. Scourge gave a terrifying smile, then charged at me. Be like father. Don't show fear. I held my ground. Screeching wildly, he lifted a paw midstride and swiped out a my face. One of his tooth covered claws caught the very edge of my ear and tore it.

I tried to sound tough and hiss, but the pain got to me and it came out as a weak growl. Had he missed? He didn't strike out again. Instead, he stood towering over me. He wasn't going to attack again. I puffed out my chest and held his blue gaze, not daring to break it.

Relief flooded through me when he looked away first. His body started to shake as laughter escaped his lips. He was laughing at me. I felt the fur on my arching spine bristle. He saw me and laughed some more. "Looks like we have a fearless kit here." Bone smirked and all the cats surrounding us looked at each other. I heard mother sigh in relief. "She may just make it," Scourge looked at Tigerclaw. "But I can't promise her survival."

Survival? Tigerclaw nodded. "I wouldn't expect you to." I had a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. What did they mean.

Scourge nodded at father and pointed with a paw towards where him and Bone had been sitting. "Come. It looks like we have much to talk about. You can even bring your mate." Tigerclaw nodded. Sasha went to his side as they went toward the rubbish heap. Then Scourge looked down at me. Interest flashing in his gaze. "Timber," he called.

"Yes," a voice floated down from up the twoleg wall. "Take the kit out, won't you. Teach her to be something useful. Oh, and don't bother being gentle." He turned and stalked away.

I stood there, not sure to be happy or scared. I was in the clan. That much I knew. What I didn't know was that I wouldn't be allowed to see my parents again.

 **And there we have it. That is officially the moment that made Iceshadow a Bloodclan cat. Sorry again about not posting this sooner. In my defense, I was working on my new forum, Pokemon Island. Maybe you could check it out. ;)**

 **Also, thanks to Flamewing for the useful reviews. Spam me all you like. ;) (That's right, double winky faces.**

 **Question of the chapter: Was that whole "test" Scourge did with Ice believable?**


	5. Timber and Ice

**Homework. That's why this chapter took so long. I did almost all of this towards the beginning of the week, and then couldn't finish it until now. Sorry for making everyone wait. Hope you think this chapter is cute. Kind of a tough love scenario. ;)**

I ran to try to keep up with the tabby ginger tom walking in front of me. "Won't you slow down, Timber," I gasped. My sides heaved with the effort, but he seemed unfazed by the quick pace.

He was an old cat. His pelt was ragged and patchy, and his muzzle was grey with age. Around his neck was a green collar studded with teeth, like Bone's and Scourge's. There were a lot of teeth on that collar.

We were walking down an abandoned alley. Mother and Father had left, and Scourge had given Timber his orders.

"No," he growled. "You'll have to learn to keep up."

I pumped my legs a little harder. "Ice."

He looked down at me in confusion. "What?"

"My name," I pushed. "My name is Ice." He snorted, and quickened his pace. What a meanie.

"Scourge gave me very specific orders, _Ice_ ," he continued. He placed emphasis on my name. I had finally caught up to him when he came to a dead stop. I streaked past him before I realized he had stopped walking, and fell over in an attempt to stop myself. The hot stone scraped my sides as I slid across the smooth stone a couple tail lengths, before finally coming to a halt. I stood up, shook myself off, and slowly padded back to him.

Timber watched me with a glare. His tail snaked towards me and flicked a bit of sand off my side. "Watch it," he growled. He pulled his tail back. "As I was saying, I have orders. You are to report to training every morning, where I will teach you to fight. We will practice until I decide we are done. Also, you will be responsible for your own food."

This didn't sound anything like the Thunderclan father told me about. Didn't they hunt to feed the kits and elders? Or share prey from one big pile? They must do things differently here in Bloodclan.

"What should we do now," I asked. My claws slid out at the thought of learning how to fight. I was ready for battle training. The sun was above the horizon by now, and there was still a full day ahead.

"Humph," Timber grunted. "Now you get out of my fur. I had to miss out on my sleep because you and your parents were crazy enough to give us a visit." He turned and started walking back down the alley, much slower than before.

I jumped forward to his side. Words could never express how happy I was that he had slowed his pace. "Ok! Where do I sleep."

His head snapped down to look at me as we walked. His eyes were narrowed in annoyance. "YOU find your own place to sleep. There are no free nests here."

I froze in place at his words. He kept going. The distance between us started to grow. Find my own nest? I didn't even know this territory. "Can I nest with you," I called. "Just for this once."

"No," he rasped, not even bothering to look back. "Meet me in this alley today at sun high for training later." He turned around a corner and disappeared from sight.

I felt my tail droop. My fur flattened. I guess I was on my own. He had said training would be in this alley. If I could find a place to sleep here, I should be ready for sun high. Then I don't have to worry about getting lost.

I padded around the two walls, looking for a sheltered place. The walls were bare and unhelpful, so she turned to the rubbish piles. Mixed among black and blue lumps where some tall, round, shiny things. Never saw what's inside those. Tentatively, I reached out a paw and poked a black lump. It gave way, and the pile started to tip. Oh no! It was going to crush me.

I leaped back, fur lifted, to keep the thing from reaching me. It fell. There was a loud _clang_ as the lump hit the shiny thing, knocking it over. A piece of the shiny thing came off and rolled past me. Then everything just stopped.

I took a few steps forward, not sure what to expect. The shiny thing sure stank, but it didn't move again. It was HUGE! Almost as big as mother's twoleg. It was hollow inside too.

I went in, thinking that maybe it was like a cave. It wasn't. I flipped on my side as the thing lurched underneath me.

"Help!" My scream went unheard, or if someone heard it, they didn't bother. My stomach churned as I was flipped upside down over and over again. Spinning. So much spinning.

Not able to tell up from down, I leaped forward, praying I'd get out somehow. I cleared the edge of the thing, landing on my back. I rolled over to see it crash into a fence.

My legs felt like jelly as I stood up. Why couldn't I walk in a straight line. I shook myself to knock some sense back into my body.

When I could finally walk straight, I went back over to the thing. I pushed on its side, but it rolled no more. Maybe I could use this. As long as it didn't move again.

 **OK. So this chapter was a little boring. But hey, next chapter will be training, Bloodclan style. You're not going to want to miss that. Remember to keep posting your reviews. Don't be shy, and don't be afraid to really roast me. ;)**

 **Question: I wanted Timber to seem strict, but with a small crack letting out his soft side. (Thus him brushing off her pelt.) Did that come across, or do I need to work on showing their relationship better in future chapters?**


	6. Striker

**I'm going to apologize in advance for how unusually long this chapter is. On the bright side, it's well worth it. Read on! ;)**

"Wake up, Ice!" A low growl echoed in my ears.

"Wha-" I gasped, bolting up and out of my nest. My claws scraped painfully against the shiny stuff as I scrambled to get out.

I had fallen asleep in my new nest. It wasn't much. Just the shiny thing, with some soft bits of pelt I found in the twoleg rubbish piles. I also had stuffed some rubbish under the rounded sides of the shiny thing, because I noticed that if something blocks it, it won't move with me in it. It was warm, comfortable, and smelly. Just like my old nest under the flowers in mother's garden. Maybe too comfortable. I had overslept.

I rubbed a paw over my eye to get the sleep out. "He said wake up, not sleepwalk," someone sneered. It was a higher voice than Timber's. I looked up. A very pale, grey she-cat with amber eyes. She looked pretty young too. Maybe eight moons the most. Only four moons older than me.

"She's fine, Striker," Timber rasped. He pulled me forward with the tip of his tail. "As long as she can still fight, that is."

Striker snorted. "That little thing? Fight?" I didn't like her.

I fluffed my fur up to make myself look bigger. "I can fight," I growled. She rolled her eyes.

"We'll see about that," Timber said, removing his tail. He flicked aside a piece of rubbish. "Now, do you know a killing move?"

I nodded. I was ready to prove myself. That Striker would see that I'm good at fighting. I'd show her. "I killed two mice, once."

Striker burst out laughing. Timber didn't look impressed at all. "I meant a REAL killing move." I shrank beneath my pelt at their reactions. I killed prey before. Wasn't that good?

Striker kept laughing. "She isn't going to survive this training session."

"Shut up, Striker," Timber growled. "Don't forget that you are brand new to the Bloodclan ranks at well. Right now, you're at the same rank as Ice." She hissed at his words. I smiled. She was the same rank as me? A kit? How embarrassing.

"At least I know what a killing move is," she mumbled.

"What was that?" Timber turned to look at her. His collar gleamed in the sunlight, highlighting every tooth. He claws shot out. She shrank beneath him. "You have never done a killing move either, and I've warned you to shut up. If you interrupt Ice's training one more time, you will regret it." Maybe Timber wasn't so bad after all.

He turned back to me. "By killing blow, I mean an attack that can kill a cat."

My tail drooped. Kill? They wanted me to kill other cats? "I… I've never done that before."

"I know. You're too small to kill yet. Your claws aren't nearly big enough. But I'm going to help you use your size against your opponents. You won't be able to kill until you're a little bigger, but you will be able to win."

He flicked his ears toward Striker. "Attack her." My eyes grew wide as I looked up at the she cat. She was twice the size of me! But maybe… just maybe…. I ran at Striker with all my might. With as powerful a leap I could muster, I launched myself at her.

Only to have a light grey paw slam into my shoulder before I could make it. Pain seared through a fresh set of cuts on my shoulder where Striker hit me. The force of the blow sent me flying to the side.

The jerk sat there, unfazed, licking my blood off one paw. She sneered. "You're going to have to do better than that to land a hit on me."

I struggled to get up. Blood was pouring from the cuts. It stained my snowy pelt red.I winced at the sight. "Ouch! She hit me."

Striker laughed again. Timber looked ticked off. "Of course she hit you. In battle, cats will fight back, fur ball! Now you are going to attack her again. You are going to do it over and over until you hit her. Figure out what you did wrong. Use your size against her, and most importantly, watch her. When you watch an opponent, you learn about them. You can learn their strengths and weaknesses as long as you endure. Then you use that weakness against them."

"Yeah right. I don't have any weaknesses," Striker scoffed. Timber gave her a look that sent shivers down my spine.

"All right. I'll do it," I said. Watch her. Endure. I wouldn't give up. Not until I hit that mangy cat.

Timber nodded. "Go!"

I ran at Striker again, this time, I swerved at the last minute to go for her side. I got a little closer before her paw slammed into my chest. She yawned. "This is going to take a while."

I picked myself back up, slightly winded. She was right. The next go, I tried diving under her. Then I went for her eyes. Then her neck.

I kept trying.

Again…

And again…

And again…

The sky blackened into night. As the cold stars started to dot the clear sky, Striker swatted me away again. My legs shook as I struggled back to my paws. By now, everything on my body ached. I had cuts crisscrossed along my shoulders, side and chest. A particularly nasty cut ran just below my eye. Clumps of fur were missing in spots where Striker had hit me but failed to slice through flesh.

It was not for nothing. I think I had learned a lot with all those pathetic attempts. Striker hit harder and reacted faster whenever I went for her eyes, neck, or belly. She was afraid I'd hit her there, even if she didn't act like it.

I ignored my unsteady legs and ran at her one last time. This time, I started aiming my blow at her shoulder, then hooked towards her neck last minute. As expected, her blow came slower than it would have if I had just gone straight for her neck. Her eyes widened as I closed in on my target. Almost there…

My claw brushed her neck fur when her paw slammed into the side of my head. I skidded across the ground. I stopped a few tail lengths from Timber. He watched me push up, trying to stand back up. My legs shook, then collapsed under me. I couldn't do it. Couldn't stand. Timber looked down on me strangely. Was that disappointment in his eyes? He was disappointed in me. I am a weakling.

Striker yawned. "This is boring, and it's getting late. I'm going to go find something to eat." She stood up and started to walk down the alley.

Timber nodded. He glanced at me one last time then started after her. His pace was slower than this morning. "You're right. Scourge was wrong. We don't need her for the plan. Thank you for your help with training Ice." I wondered what he meant by that. What plan?

She gave a cruel smile. They both passed me. "My pleasure - YEOW!" She screeched as I shot up from beneath her and tore my claws down her belly. I don't know where the surge of energy came from, but I was glad it came.

Timber had been right about my claws. Even fully unsheathed, I couldn't draw blood, but I did manage to pull out clumps of her fur.

"You worthless little piece of dung," she shrieked, swiping at me with her claws.

Laughing, I leaped back out of her reach. "I got you. I finally got you." I a clump of her fur out from between my claws. "Not so invincible now."

"That was a dirty trick," she howled. She probably would have lunged at me too if Timber hadn't stepped between us.

"Trick or not, she did complete the task," he growled. Was that a smile I saw flash across his lips? Probably not. It was awful dark by now. "A Bloodclan cat does what it takes to win. Ice knows that. Maybe you could learn a thing or two from her."

Striker sputtered in frustration. A laugh bubbled up in my chest and burst out. I was still laughing when she whirled around and stomped off.

Timber watched me with a stony face. The laughing made everything hurt worse, but I didn't care. He shook his head. "You're going to need to learn a lot if you're going to survive a battle, but you did well for tonight, kit."

He turned and started heading toward his nest. "I had hoped you would figure out that Striker's weakness was her overconfidence. Don't let yourself get cocky like her."

 **Thank you for reading through all that. Yes! Ice(shadow) has officially had her first lesson on Bloodclan cruelty. How'd you like Striker? Talk about the ultimate snotty rival. I have a feeling she'll be showing up a lot more in this story. ;)**

 **Question of the Chapter: None today. It's a freebie chapter. ;)**


	7. Hunger

**First day of training's done, now what? ;)**

Everything on my body ached. As I lay in my shiny, cave-like nest, all I could think about was how much it hurt. Most of my scratches had started to scab. Every muscle screamed as if it was on fire. The worst thing was the hunger. A tight gnawing at the pit of my stomach.

I had been too exhausted to look for something to eat after training last night. Now the early morning sun shone down and I still hadn't eaten since I caught those mice with Father two nights ago. It was unbearable.

I lifted myself up on weak paws, against the protests of my aching muscles. I left behind my now blood stained nest and practically dragged myself over to the rubbish pile a little ways away. Something smelled good.

With a slash of my claws, I broke open one of the lumps. Its contents spilled everywhere. Strange objects of every shape and size filled my vision. This was what twolegs piled up?

Despite the strange colors, the smell beckoned me on. I pawed my way through the pile until I happened across a slightly blackened lump of meat. Thrush maybe? Possibly a featherless sparrow? I wasn't sure, but it smelled like a bird. My mouth watered at the sight of it. FOOD!. Clamping down on it with my teeth, I dragged the meat out of the pile back towards my nest.

The prey didn't even struggle. The twoleg must have killed it and not eaten it. Stupid twoleg. Oh well. Their stupidity was my good luck.

As soon as I was in the shelter of my nest, I ripped into the bird. "Mmmmmmm…" It was the best thing I ever tasted. I took off chunks with my claws before snatching the pieces up in my jaws.

 _BANG!_ I dropped the piece of food in my mouth in surprise. The sudden noise rang over and over in my ears. "What the-"

"Hey! Kit!" Timber's face appeared upside down from the edge at the top of my nest. "Come on. It's time for your next day of training."

My heart dropped. No… I eyed the meat laying at my paws. "But I'm eating." The words were supposed to come out as a whisper but echoed around until it sounded like a shout.

He rolled his eyes. "Finish the bite you're on and hurry up. Food can wait."

Reluctantly, I picked back up the morsel I had dropped and gulped it down. Then I padded back out on unsteady paws. Stupid sore muscles. Why can't fighting come easily like it did for Father?

With a painful leap, I landed on the top of my nest with Timber. He looked down on me with cold eyes. "Good. Now come on." He twitched his tail, beckoning me to follow, and jumped onto the nearby fence.

I leaped after him. "Where are we going," I puffed. He didn't answer. Just stared ahead. He was back to his fast pace, and I had an even harder time keeping up with him. "Please wait. I can't keep up."

He didn't slow. "No. If we are going to get there on time, then you'll need to go faster."

His answer made my heart drop more. Tears of frustration started to well up, but I fought them back down. It wasn't fair. Couldn't I at least get a day to get used to all this? A picture of Mother and Father popped into my head. I missed them. I wanted to go home, not fight mean cats and feel hungry all the time.

"Timber…" I started, not sure what he would say. "When can I go back home? When can I see my Mother and Father?"

He stopped dead in his tracks. Again, I was going to fast to stop in time and I rammed into his hind quarters. "Oof."

He turned back to me, not even noticing that I rammed into him. There was a harsh glint in his amber eyes. "When will you see your parents," he asked incredulously. "When will you go home? What do you think this is? Some little game? You're part of Bloodclan now, Ice. That's not something to be taken lightly. You're bound to this clan more tightly that you could imagine. More tightly than any family. There is no going back. No. Chances are, you'll never see your parents again."

A trickle of ice ran down my back. Never see them again? "But… but… but they were my family. That garden was my home." How could I just never see them again? The tears that had threatened to spill now flowed over. It felt like a set of Striker's claws just tore into my chest. "I.. I.. wanna go home! I WANT MY MOTHER!" I cried. Sobs racked my body. I must have looked pitiful. Some warrior I had turned out to be.

Timber snorted and rolled his eyes. "Now Ice.." another wail escaped my lips. His ears slowly lowered, and his eyes seemed to soften. Almost imperceptibly.

I lifted my front paws over my eyes to stop the tears. "I… I… hic… want to be strong.. hic… but not… hic…. like this...hic"

There was a soft pressure on the back of my neck. The fence disappeared from under my hind paws. I moved my front paws to see Timber gently carrying me by the scruff along the fence. I didn't even feel a jostle as he walked at that quick pace of his down the fence. I looked up to see him staring straight forward with glassy eyes. "Timber?"

"Don't worry about me dropping you," he mumbled around my white scruff. "Take a second to get ahold of yourself before we get there."

I sniffed a little, and wiped a tear away from my eyes with a paw. It wasn't Timber's fault, I realized. He doesn't make the rules. I thought back to that little black cat who scratched my ear. Scourge. He was the leader. He must be. I could tell by the way the other cats had acted around him. It was his fault I couldn't see Mother and Father.

"Is it because Scourge won't let me?" My question hung in the air for a moment. Timber continued to walk his fast pace. For a moment, I thought he might not have heard me.

"Yes," he said after a moment. "He doesn't want to risk anything. He's got... plans. You are important, Ice, but only if you focus on doing your best. Anything that can sidetrack you must be ignored. Even your parents. If you can do that, then you can do great things."

Again he mentioned something about a plan. I was curious. Just what was this plan, and what do I have to do with it? I nodded my understanding, but deep inside I knew that I wouldn't be able to focus only on fighting. Not when I was hearing more and more about this "plan." I was going to find out what it was, no matter what.

"Are you ready to act like a sane cat now," Timber's words broke through my thoughts.

I nodded and looked up at him. "Yes. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said those things." I meant what I said. I missed my old life, but thinking about that scary cat, Scourge, reminded me why I was here. "I'll do what it takes to become a warrior like Tigerclaw."

Timber set me back down on the fence. This one looked different than the one we started on. "Good." He looked down on me with a new look on his face. Not quite warm, but something else. Understanding. "Sometimes hunger can make us do and say things we regret. There is not much food in twolegplace for all of Bloodclan." He motioned around all us with a paw. "You must learn to live with it and use it to your advantage, not let it control you."

I tilted my head. Could it really have been hunger that made me cry? Was that the problem? If I hadn't still been hungry… If I had finished that meat lying in my nest… Would I have been more excited for training like I was last night when I wasn't hungry? I shook my head to clear it. It didn't matter. "Okay, Timber. I'll try."

His lips curled slightly at the ends in a tiny smile. "Good. Now let's get to your next lesson." He leaped off the fence and I followed. "Ice, it's time you met Scourge's right-hand cat."

I froze as I recognized the two cats in front of me. This was going to be bad. Very bad. In front of me stood the giant black and white cat that had been with Scourge. Bone. And just behind him, looking smug, stood the one cat I had immediately learned to hate.

"Today," Timber continued. "You will be learning to fight with the help of Bone and Striker."

 **DuhDuhDuuuuuuuuuhhhhh! Slight cliff hanger. Yes. Ice will have to fight Bone and Striker at the same time. Who do you think will win? Tiny, four moon old kit with claws to small to scratch, or the big burly Bloodclan deputy? The results may shock you, or not depending on how good of a guesser you are.**

 **If you like this story so far, then hold onto your hats because the prequel is coming! I'll probably have the first chapter of The Traveler Falling up before the end of the week, so keep your peepers peeled. ;D**

 **Question of the Chapter: Compared to how Timber was in the beginning, how do you feel about him? Like, love, hate, or don't care?**


	8. I'm Learning

No! Why? WHY?

I could barely walk after yesterday's training, and I still couldn't hurt anybody with my claws. How was I supposed to take down the biggest cat I've ever seen, and nasty Striker on top of that? Even if I ripped out all their fur they still wouldn't go down. Not that I'd get a chance to do anything like that.

Bone's lips curled up into a yellowed smile. "You sure about this, Timber? She looks like she's about to fall over dead. I know we don't really care about if she lives or dies, but Scourge had some sort of hope this would work for some reason. Maybe I should finish her off now and tell Scourge, 'maybe the next one.'"

"I'll be the judge of that." A new voice made me shiver. I turned to see Scourge standing on a fence a little ways away. His cold blue eyes were on me. "After all, I'll be watching the entire time."

I shot a look at Timber, hoping he'd say something of agreement to Bone's statement. Something that meant I didn't have to train with them. My heart fell as he shook his head.

"No. She can do this. As long as you stick to the task I gave you she will survive." He glanced down at me. "Ready Ice?"

I gulped. With some difficulty, I tried to ignore Scourge. I could still feel his eyes on me. "R-ready. What do I have to do?"

He gestured over to the two cats with his tail. "If you're going to fight, you'll need to know how to hold your own against multiple cats. These two are going to attack you. It's up to you to defend yourself, avoid their blows, and put in a few attacks of your own if possible."

I looked down at my paws. The glint of my claws flashed just below my tortoiseshell fur. "But you said that my claws are too small to cause any damage? How am I supposed to attack?"

His eyes rolled, like I had just asked the most obvious question in the world. "You won't be able to hurt them now, but if you can learn to get some attacks in, you'll be able to shred the enemy when you get larger."

"Sorry," I said, shrinking back. I probably should have figured that out by now anyway. Stupid. I needed to remember to think before I ask. These cats didn't seem to like questions.

His ears twitched in annoyance. "Now try to keep in mind what you learned yesterday and you should end up passing. Begin."

He said the words so quickly I didn't register that he had already started the training exercise, but Striker clearly did. She was on top of me in seconds, slashing her claws down me and reopening the scratch on my shoulder. Then she was gone. Slipping away and out of reach before the scream of surprise could come out of my mouth.

I whirled around to face her, but then Bone entered the fray, taking advantage of my turned back by slamming into my hindquarters.

The world turned upside down as I was bowled over. Belly up. Not good. There was a smile on Strikers face as she dove in to try to slash at my belly. Panicking, my legs flailed out. One of my hind paws caught her in the jaw so hard her head snapped to the side. I rolled right side up as she hissed in anger.

Striker then did something that I will never forget. Rising onto her hind paws, she let out a furious yowl. "I'll crush you!" Her paws plummeted down toward me. The shear fearsomeness made me freeze in fear. I couldn't 't react.

A sharp pain in my tail brought me back to reality as I was dragged out of the way of the ruthless paws by my tail. I could see them slam into the earth where moments ago my neck had been. She would have killed me with the power of her falling paws.

I turned to see Bone still holding onto my tail in his teeth. His eyes glinted with glee as he lifted his head, dragging me up into the air. With an effortless motion, I felt myself get flung into the air. I closed my eyes. The weightlessness, the complete lack of control over myself was torture for those few heartbeats. It was almost a relief to come slamming back into the hard black stone.

When I opened my eyes, my vision swam, but I could just make out the silhouettes of Bone and Striker stalking their way towards me. They separated and spread so that one was on each side of me.

They were going to surround me and take me out. They obviously didn't care what happened to me, so what was stopping them from ending it now? This was impossible! Timber should realize that. There was no way I was going to be able to beat the both of them.

Striker leaped. Bone leaped. I gave up, closing my eyes and crouching low, waiting for the pain to come. "Watch out," came a gruff yowl. There was an awful sound of screeching, and I flinched as a breeze passed over my back, but no pain came.

"My eyes snapped open to see Striker and Bone tangled up in a heap to my side. They had hit each other when I crouched down! Dumbstruck at my misfortune, something clicked in my head. Another puzzle piece. Timber's words came back to me… ' _keep in mind what you learned yesterday.'_

They weren't used to teamwork. That's why their attacks didn't come at the same time. And when they tried to attack at the same time, they screwed up. That's their weakness! I could use this.

Before they could untangle themselves, I leaped on Striker's back and tried to scratch at his eyes. I missed, but he reacted with a growl and a swipe of her tooth covered claws. Bone jerked away as her claws caught him on the foreleg. "Watch it," he hissed.

"You watch it yourself," she growled, jerking away from him. I had jumped back off of her before she could stand up with me on her. "You think you're so smart, little kit," she snarled. Her muscles rippled as she went into a crouch. "I'll show you how smart you are, and get you back for that last training session." She darted forward at that amazingly fast speed. Pain erupted in my cheek as she slammed a paw into my head.

Think, Ice. Think. I let my body roll with the attack so that her paw kept going as I fell. Her eyes widened as she was caught off balance and stumbled. Couldn't use claws, so instead I bit into her hind leg. Hard.

The awful taste of blood seeped into my mouth but I ignored it, biting down harder. She howled in pain and started kicking the leg back and forth to shake me off. It was useless.

Meanwhile, Bone had picked himself up. I spotted him silently stalking his way behind me and Striker. "Get her," the she cat screeched. He paused for a moment at her words, then darted forward.

In a mad attempt to get out of the way, I released my hold of Striker and scrambled away. Bone landed on Striker, but rather than get tangled in her like I hoped, he used her as a springboard to change directions, and he was once about to barrel into me.

His head collided with my side and I went down. Stone scraped against me as his attack sent me rolling against the ground. "Owwwwww," I groaned. The fresh bruises did not help my already sore muscled, and I was pretty sure most of my cuts had reopened.

My ear twitched as Timber's voice drifted over the battlefield. "I think that will be all for today." I stole a glance upward to be greeted by his stony face staring down at me.

"Did I do it?" I asked.

The corner of his mouth twitched slightly. "Yes, Ice. You could say that."

Striker stood up from where Bone had knocked her over. She looked absolutely furious, but said nothing.

Bone sat down and ran a paw over his head. His eyes shot towards Striker for a second, then back to Timber. "If you say so. She's not much, but I'll give you this, Timber. She almost made me break a sweat. The kits not bad. Maybe we can hold off on finishing her off for now."

"I agree." Scourge! I had forgotten about him. I tilted my head to see him standing up on the fence. He started to glide away without sparing a glance backward. "She just might survive. In fact, if she keeps this up she will prove very useful indeed."

Just what was that cat planning?

 **Big apology time. SORRYSORRYSORRY! I took a week off because I was getting bored of the story, then things got extremely busy and I hadn't been able to post chapters until now. I looked at the reader stats and noticed people were still coming back and waiting for the next chapter. THANK YOU FOR COMING BACK I AM JUST A JERK! I realize I can't promise that it won't happen again but I do promise I'll try to not let it happen again. Cookies for all! (: :) (: :)**

 **;)**


	9. Claws

I padded slowly, silently, through the shadows of the alleyway. My stupid white fur was a dead giveaway out in the open.

A shape moved ahead of me a few tail lengths ahead. Perfect. I followed my target, careful to keep against the walls of the twoleg nest. Silent paws. Silent paws. Skittering sounded ahead of me as the dark shape disappeared around the side of a rubbish heap.

The clicking of claws could be heard just on the other side. I paused, tasting the air, then settled into a crouch. My legs bunched and uncoiled in a messy spring, but it was enough to hit the shadow smack on the back.

 _ **Squeek!**_ The rat bucked beneath my claws. Woah! It was definitely putting up more of a fight than a mouse. It reared beneath my paws, reaching back with its head with gnashing teeth. I leaned backward to keep out of its reach. I closed my eyes as I shot forward and nipped it's neck.

 _ **SQUEEK!**_ It squealed even louder. Claws raked against my hind leg as it kicked its legs at me. Why didn't it die. I bit down harder. _**Crunch.**_ The rat collapsed beneath me as my teeth crushed its backbone. I released my grip on its neck and resheathed my claws. It was fat. That's all that matters.

My mouth watered at the sight of the fresh prey. Grabbing a heap of fur in my mouth, I dragged it back down the alley the way I came, through the shadows.

It had been about a week since the training session with Bone and Striker. Since then, it was just Timber barking orders at me during training. His words still echoed in my ears.

 _Stand on your hind legs until I say you can come down, and you better not drop._

 _The main kill points are the neck, spine, and belly. Hit those and hit those hard on this dead rat I brought for you to practice on. Keep hitting until there's nothing left to hit._

 _Climb. Faster Ice. Put your shoulders into it, and when you're as high as you think you can get, climb higher._

He didn't seem to like me much, but that was fine with me. I was working harder than ever, and I felt great now. The aching in my muscles from overuse went away a long time ago. It never came back. My cuts had closed up into plain pink scars. On top of that, I was doing more and more. I never knew how to climb or fight, but Timber seemed to know how to do it all. I wouldn't have been surprised if the next session we had, he'd show me how to swim.

I dropped the rat on my bloodstained nest. Time to practice. I unsheathed my claws and scraped them across the rat's neck in quick swipes. They caught on it's fur. Clumps of grey fur went flying. There was a ripping sound as my second slash caught skin. Blood slowly welled from the fresh wound on it's neck.

Shallow, but still there.

A smile worked its way up onto my face.

My claws had grown. Not long now and I'd be able to do real attacks like Striker. The she cat wouldn't know what hit her. Excited by my own discovery, I practiced some more fighting moves on the rat. Flinging it to the side with my teeth. Tearing at its belly with my hind paws.

Only when I got bored did I finally sit down and eat the now shredded prey. I licked the blood off my white fur and sighed, looking down at my claws, still unsheathed. The seemed so small compared to the teeth Timber, Bone and Scourge wore.

 **Bang!**

The sound of a cat landing on my nest broke me away from my thoughts. Striker's head appeared upside down, again, at the entrance. "Come on, Ice," she said in a annoyed voice. "Timber pulled me away from sparring with Bone to fetch you. The nerve of that cat." Her words became unintelligible grumbles as she pulled her head away and out of sight.

"Fine," I sighed, scrambling out of my nest. Stupid she cat didn't need to tell me that much. "Where are they?"

An explosion of pain burst into my back as Striker leaped off the top of my nest and landed on me, digging her claws into my back. "Aaaaaaah!"

"He's at the forest border where the kittypets are," she hissed in my ear. "But I'm going to make you regret showing me up in front of Bone last week first."

Lessons Father taught me when he visited me and Mother flashed through my head. I let myself fall limp, going down with Striker still on my back.

"Oof," she groaned as I rolled into her.

"You sure about that," I hissed.

"Yes I am," she smiled, shoving me away. Her claws caught me in the chest with the shove, opening a nasty scratch. She pattered away, pale grey fur still perfectly intact and scratch free. "Remember your place, kit," her voice echoed back at me as I stared down at the fresh blood.

Mouseheart. The blood left an awful taste in my mouth as I licked at the cut to clean it. Not another scar. My eyes darted to my claws. Just a little longer and I'd be able to leave scratches like that on her.


	10. Tally

It didn't take long to clean up the new scratch. A couple of licks and I was on my way to the edge of twoleg place.

"Timber," I called looking around as I padded down the fence. "Where are you? Timber?" Cautiously, I leaped down from the fence, only to practically leap out of my fur when a tabby ginger tail wrapped around my neck. "AHHH!"

A ginger paw followed the tail. This time, it flew across my mouth. I winced as unsheathed claws nicked my cheeks. "Shut up," a hiss came from behind me. Timber. "Never scream. Not even with a real enemy. You'll give away your position."

I spat out the paw and pulled away from the tail. "Sorry," I whispered. Never scream, got it. "So what are we doing here? We always train in the alley ways."

Timber shook his head. "This isn't a normal training session. This is a raid."

I pricked my ears. "A raid? What's that?"

He rolled his eyes. "Kits," he grumbled under his breath. He pointed with his tail to a thick bush near the thunderpath. "Scourge has ordered us to 'collect' some new recruits. There's a mother named Molly in that bush with some young kits. The father is away so it shouldn't be so hard."

My eyes widened. "We're stealing kits," I hissed in surprise. I was horrified. We couldn't just steal someone's kits.

He nodded. "Don't worry. You won't have to really fight. I'll take care of the mother. You'll snatch the kits."

My heart dropped. I had to snatch the kits myself? I was still a kit myself. "But...b...but I-"

"I'm here, Timber. Ready for the raid?" I turned in surprise to see a solid, dark grey tom with amber eyes standing on the fence above us. Around his neck was a ragged blue collar with a few teeth poked in here and there. I backed up as he leaped down between us. His ears twitched as he spotted me. "Who's this?"

This ticked me off. "I could say the same about you," I shot back, puffing out my chest.

His eyes widened in surprise, then closed as his body shook with the effort to hold back laughter. "I suppose you could," he said warmly. His smile was contagious, because soon I had one too. Maybe he wasn't that bad?

Timber glanced from me to the stranger, then sighed. "This is Ice. The new cat Scourge has me training. Ice, this is Tally. He's Striker's older brother." My mood immediately dropped. "Really?"

Tally chuckled again, this time a little more softly. "Yup. So you're the kit I've been hearing so much about. Striker won't stop complaining about you, and Timber here keeps talking about all his big hopes and ideas for you." Timber shot him an angry look but Tally ignored it. Instead, he jokingly bumped him in the shoulder.

I was amazed. Timber bragging about me? This cat was crazy. Timber never seemed interested in anything I did unless I "passed" his lessons. Tally seemed very different from Striker.

Timber caught me gaping at Tally. "Wipe that look of your face and mind yourself, Ice," he snorted.

"Sorry," I whimpered and sat down.

"Good. Now we need to go over the plan to get these kits," Timber said, scratching some lines in the dirt. "Tally, you'll need to be over here when I launch an attack. Ice, you can come around the back of the bush while I'm taking care of the mother and…"

Timber's words faded as my eyes drifted over to Tally. Striker's brother eh? I suppose they were both grey with amber eyes, but Tally was definitely different. His eyes held a playful spark while hers had an angry fire. He looked older than her. About 16 moons compared to her 8. On top of that, his entire mood seemed laid back and carefree. Striker was an uptight, pompous stick in the muck.

"Any questions?" My thoughts came back to the task at hand as Timber ended his plan. From the corner of my eye, I saw Tally's eyes lock with my green eyes. A smile flickered across his face. Uh oh! He knew I wasn't paying attention!

"Got it all right here," Tally said, tapping his head with his tail.

"Good," Timber nodded. "Ice?"

"I.. Uh.." I stuttered. What do I say? I can't say I heard none of it. Timber would bite my head off for that.

"She'll do fine," Tally cut in. "Most of the plan is pretty basic, and chances are we'll have to do some improvising. You make things more complicated than they have to be."

DID HE JUST SAY THAT TO TIMBER?! My mouth dropped open. You don't talk back to Timber. You just don't. Even Bone had never said anything against the old tom.

To my further surprise, Timber smiled at the remark. Not just a twitching of the sides of his lips that seemed to take the place of a smile. A real smile. "Perhaps you are right." He glanced down at me. "You haven't let me down yet. Don't screw this one up."

My paws felt lighter than air. I was flooded by relief, and I took that as a compliment. "I won't," I promised, nodding. "Just you watch."

"I'll be doing just that," Timber rasped. The edges of his mouth twitched. He turned and started making his way through the shadows towards the bush. "Okay you two. Get into position," he whispered with the flick of his tail.

I sighed. Now the only problem was that I had no clue what I was doing. A blur of grey caught my eye as Tally darted off. Before he made it far, though, he stopped and turned to look at me. One amber eye disappeared momentarily with a quick wink. He motioned with his head to follow.

Unsure, I padded after him towards the back of the bush. To think, Tally is helping me when his sister would have helped Timber flay me.

I hope my next training session is with him.

 **I was hoping to get the raid into this chapter but it was just getting to long. I promise it will be in the next chapter though. ;)**


	11. The Raid

I took my place at the back of the bush. Tally had quickly filled me in on the basics of the mission while Timber got into place. "But I don't think I can steal a kit," I whimpered. I didn't really want to do this job, even if Timber wanted me to."

"You'll be fine," Tally urged. "We've had our eye on these kits for a while now. They're smaller than you, so you shouldn't have any trouble carrying them. It will be easy." He didn't understand.

"If you say so," I said, settling near the branches of the bush. He disappeared around it's side. I flattened my ears and waited. Every muscle in my body tensed in preparation for action. It felt like moons had passed while I sat there, waiting while nothing happened.

 _ **MREOWW!**_ The silence was broken by an awful screeching noise. The bush beside me started to shake. This is it.

"Stay away from my nest," came an unfamiliar screech, followed by Timber's hiss. Ripping sounds filled the air as the cats dragged each other away from the bush.

"Now Ice," I heard Tally whisper.

"Okay," I whispered hurriedly, squeezing under the branches. "Ow!" Bark and thorns dragged at my pelt as I wormed my way through the maze of branches toward the center. The scent of warm nests and milk led me onward. I can do this. I can do this. Everything will be fine.

Before I realized it, I slipped off a branch and landed in a shallow scoop under the bush. Three wide eyed kits, no more than 3 moons old stared at me. One squeaked. "Mama!'

"Hush, hush," I pleaded, gently placing my tail over his mouth. "It's okay. I'm here to get you out of harm's way." The lie burned in my throat.

"Who are you," another piped up. She backed away and pressed herself against the nest wall.

"I'm a friend," I said, trying to plaster on a fake smile. My heart was pounding. I had to get them out of here fast.

"Are you really?" The third kit cocked his head and stared at me. He didn't seem afraid at all.

"Of course I am, silly," I said. I even threw in a little laugh. That seemed to help. The other two kits visibly relaxed a little. An idea popped into my head. "I'll even prove it to you. Let's play a game."

All three of them pricked their ears in excitement. "A game! What kind of game," the first kit said, drawing closer.

"It's called, Let's Hide. In this game, I'll give each of you a badger ride. I'll give you a nice hiding place where you can stay while while another tries to find you. You can't make a noise even if you're found, though, or you lose the game."

"No problem," kit number three said. "I never lose."

"Do too," the second kit cried, pulling away from the nest wall.

The sound of fighting was getting louder. "Hurry up, Ice," Tally's voice drifted through the leaves. Time was running out.

"Well we'll see who is the winner, but nobody wins if they don't start being quite right now." They all clamped their mouth shut. A sigh escaped me. "Thank you. Now you," I said, pointing to the second kit. "You're first." She'd probably be the hardest to take care of, so it was best if she went first.

She hesitated a second before digging her little claws into my white back and hauling herself up. It was a struggle to slip back through the branches with the extra weight. I didn't want to hurt her.

She whimpered as a thorn caught her fur, but thankfully stayed silent. It was a relief to make it to the edge of the branches. "Here's your stop. Stay here and hide." She nodded and crouched down until she was pressed against the ground. "Tally," I hissed before turning around and going back for the other kits.

Behind me, I could hear a rustling as Tally pulled the kit out from under the bush. "Found you, little one," he whispered. The kit didn't answer. Thank goodness. She actually listened to me.

The next two were easier. Especially the third kit. He ducked under branches for me when we had to make a tight squeeze. "Is that all," Tally asked, lifting the outer branches for me to squeeze out.

"Yes," I panted. He took the third kit off of my back. "There were only three."

"Good," he nodded. "Take one. I can carry the other two. I don't know how long Timber can keep her fighting." With a scoop of his head he had the little she kit and the first tom hanging from his jaws by their scruff.

The she kit squeaked in surprise. "Hush. The game's still going on," I reminded her as I scooped down and picked up the remaining kit. She immediately fell silent.

Good. Almost done. My paws kicked into high gear, tearing down the side of the thunderpath towards the fence. Even with my head start and lighter load, Tally passed me easily. His long legs took effortless strokes as he ran toward the fence and leaped up.

"Comf- Om Ife," he said, struggling to speak around the kit's fur. I pumped my legs harder. Almost there!

"MY KITS!" A heart shattering scream tore across the space from behind me. The mother had spotted us as she fought Timber and knew what we were doing. Footsteps pounded as she broke away from the fight and took chase. I didn't look back. Didn't want to see the pain and fear in her eyes. Almost there.

Something slammed down on my tail. I jerked to a painful stop, kit tumbling out of my scratch. The little tom wailed at the sudden drop. Poor thing.

A look behind me showed exactly what I had feared. The mother had me, paw planted firmly on my white tail. Her eyes widened as I looked up at her fearfully. "You're still a kit yourself?!"

"Y-Yes," I stammered, paralyzed. Not that it mattered. There was no getting away anyway.

"But you-" A blur of grey flashed between me and the queen. Then everything went red. Blood red. The mother's eyes became glassy as mirrors. Blank of all soul. Her body teetered, then collapsed on top of me. The warm wet liquid was everywhere, gushing out of a gaping hole in her neck.

 **So I guess it ended in a semi-cliffhanger. Not what I wanted to do, but oh well. To be honest, I had tried writing out this chapter so it wouldn't end that way but it was just getting too long. On the bright side, I'm almost done with the next chapter so you can expect it soon. ;)**

 **Also, I now have a finished full body drawing of Iceshadow up on Deviant art if anybody was ever curious.**

 **Here's the link:** **iceshadowsheart. / art/Iceshadow- 569915806 (You'll have to remove the spaces. Sorry.)**


	12. Failure's Never an Option

"Aaah! Help!" My screams were muffled as blood flowed into my mouth. The awful taste filled my mouth. I clawed at the ground, desperately trying to get out from under her. "HELP ME!"

Suddenly, her body disappeared. I shot away as soon as I was freed, and turned to find Timber tossing the mother's body aside like a piece of prey. Then he ran over to me and sniffed at my sides.

"Are you hurt? Is any of this your blood? Tell me if you're okay." His voice was raised, but not in the way I was used to. He sounded like mother whenever I tried to lean out over the fence to look for father, or whenever her twoleg came out when she wasn't expecting it. It was strange, but somehow it made me feel better that Timber was worried for me.

The sight of the mother's motionless form made me sway. So much blood. I didn't feel to scent of blood clogged my nostrils. I was covered in it. My normally white pelt and tortoiseshell legs were completely stained red. It was impossible to tell where the white ended and the tortoiseshell began. Was she really…

"She's fine," Tally's voice made us both whirl in surprise. He sat a fox length away from us, licking blood off of his paw. Behind him, the three terrified kits crouched, crying by the fence. The sight of them turned my shock and fear to boiling anger. "You should thank me, Ice." He smiled that goofy warm smile. The one I thought showed that he was friendly. The one that made me think he wasn't so bad. Oh how I hated that smile now.

"Thank you?" Timber hissed and pulled away from me. I shivered. "That was entirely unnecessary. We were supposed to get the kits, not kill the mother."

Tally's smile seemed to falter for a second. "So," he chuckled a little And flicked his tail. "Scourge never said we couldn't kill. He's never one to get angry at a little bloodshed."

Timber snorted. "No, I'll admit he never minds us killing, but Scourge is a smart cat. Don't be such a fool, Tally. That she cat could easily have had more kits in the future that we could have taken. Now that she's dead, we won't have that in the future. Use some logic."

Tally rolled his eyes. "There will always be more she cats. Give her a few moons and Ice could probably take this one's place. Only thing is that Ice would be much more useful." His amber eyes flicked to me. I backed away, shivering. What did he mean, I could take her place? The look he gave me struck fear to my very core. This cat terrified me. More than Bone. More than Scourge.

I was surprised when Timber stepped in front of me, blocking my sight of him. "You stay away from her." His voice was deep and stone cold.

Silence fell. I tried to peer around Timber but he kept shifting to block my sight. Eventually, Tally's words broke the tension. "Fine. You can't protect her, though. Soon enough, she'll have to protect herself. I wonder what will happen then."

The fur on Timber's back raised straight up. A hiss tore through his lips, so loud that I was sure Tally was flinching. I was angry too. This cat was threatening me. Fed up, I slipped past Timber and launched myself at the grey cat.

"Ice! Don't!" Timber's shout of surprise washed over me. I ignored him. My claws unsheathed as I landed on Tally's shoulder. My claws can cut now. They can tear through flesh. Memories of when my first training session ran through me head.

Beneath me, Tally bucked. "Get off, you stupid kit. Don't make me hurt you."

"Never," I screeched, swiping a front paw at the back of his neck. I was caught off guard as a little blood started to ooze from where I hit him. I did it! My vision filled with red, and it wasn't blood in my eyes. I hit him again, this time in the jaw. His head snapped to the side and a single tooth fell to the ground. I knocked out his tooth!?

"That's it," Tally said. I lurched backwards as Tally raised himself up onto two hind legs. Realizing what was happening, I tried to leap away. As soon as my claws unhooked themselves from his back, Tally went down.

My body screamed as the full force of him crashed down on top of me. "Get off, you piece of dung," I spat. My legs kicked out at his back in an attempt to shove him off.

He laughed. That angered me more. I kicked harder, feeling clumps of fur coming off in my claws. He laughed harder, then his weight disappeared off me. I wasted no time springing to my paws and flinging myself at him. His paw came down at me seconds after I dashed under him. Before he could react, I jumped up underneath him and clawed at his belly. More blood came.

His reaction was more than I anticipated. Rather than a cry or an attempt to jump away, one of his hind legs shot out and slammed into my side. I was flung out from under him and rolled a little ways. I was no longer seeing red.

"Stop it," I heard Timber shouting from somewhere. "Ice, you have to get away from him!" It sounded like he was getting closer.

Too bad Tally was on top of me. His amber eyes stared down. Gone was the angry fire in his eyes. Once again, it was replaced by a friendly flicker. What was wrong with this cat? "Don't worry, Ice. I'm going to teach you a very important lesson that everyone here in Bloodclan knows." His paw lifted, but I didn't even notice it. I was focused only on his terrifying eyes. "When you're one of us, failure is never an option." He smiled. "Especially in battle."

"Tally!" That was Timber's scream. I felt a tug on my scruff. The grey tom's paw came down. My vision swam, then everything went dark.

 **I hope you'll be happy to hear that I'm changing my chapter post day. Instead of posting a new chapter every Tuesday, I'll be posting ever Saturday or Sunday. Figured I should warn everyone. This will fit with my new schedule much more easily. ;)**

 **P.s. I originally intended for Tally to be Ice's only friend in Bloodclan when I came up with him. Since I don't plan these things out, I guess that's not happening. HE TOOK ON A LIFE OF HIS OWN! I think this will make him much more interesting though... If I'm wrong, then I suppose it's too late.**


	13. First Tooth

"Momma." My legs felt heavy, and for some reason my head hurt. "Mother. Where are you?"

"She's somewhere else, Ice," a deep voice rasped softly. "Now stop trying to move or you'll make yourself feel worse."

That wasn't Mother. Wasn't Father either, but yet I knew that voice. My eyes snapped open. "Timber?"

"Shhhh." The old ginger tom placed his tail tip on my shoulder. "I'm here. You're safe for now." I tried to get up, but Timber's paw held me down. My vision swam with the attempt. My head wouldn't stop hurting. Blinking, I tried to get my bearings. It was dark and I could barely see. In a heat beat, the world lit up in a flash of white light, then fell back into darkness. In that moment, I could see harsh stone walls raised up tightly around us. It looked like we were inside one of those long tunnels twolegs kept stacked on top of each other near the edge of twoleg place. Timber stood a little ways away, darkly outlined in the entry way. Loud rumbling clogged my ears. It was night, and we were in the middle of a thunderstorm.

"Wha… What happened? Where are we?" I dug my claws into the soft bits of rat fur and twoleg rubbish piled beneath me in a makeshift nest.

Timber snorted and lifted his paw. "My nest. It was much closer than yours so I brought you here instead." His paws shook as he lowered himself to the floor next to me. "These old bones can still fight, but when the rain comes down it gets hard to walk."

I remembered Tally's eyes. The way he gleefully brought his paw down to slam it on my head. The tug I felt on my scruff must have been Timber trying to drag me out of the way. He had helped me again. "Thank you…. Timber," I mewed.

He dropped his muzzle down to his paws. "You wouldn't have to thank me if you hadn't jumped into a fight with that furball in the first place. I taught you to be a better fighter than that."

If my head could have been lifted, I would have dropped it in shame. Instead, I settled for staring at my brown and black paws. "I know. I guess I just lost myself. You know… lost control."

Timber closed his eyes. "Did you see red?"

I nodded.

He sighed. "It's easy to lose yourself when the rage sets in. You can't let that happen. When you lose your head in a fight, you make mistakes and you die. No do overs. No sorrys."

"How do I stop it then," I looked at him, pleading. "I don't want that to happen again."

He opened one eye and looked at me. "When I feel it coming, I stop and breath."

"You breath?" I didn't believe him. There had to be something more to it. "I don't get it. I breath all the time. How is that going to stop it?"

"Not sure," Timber said, closing his eye again. "It just does. I stop and listen to myself breath."

Listen to myself breath… I was still a little apprehensive, but didn't question him further on the subject. Instead, I moved to something else that was eating at me. "What happened to Tally?"

Timber remained silent, but I could tell he wasn't asleep. I tried once more to lift myself to my feet. To walk over to Timber. Legs shaking, I managed to get to my paws before falling once more into the nest.

Another flash of lightning showed Timber raising himself up to a sitting position, then darkness took over once more. "All right. That's enough. You're going to make things worse for yourself. Just take a moment for once and eat the prey I left you.

Something soft bumped into me. A piece of meat like the ones you can normally find in the twoleg rubbish. He was pushing it toward me with a paw.

Unsure of where to look, I focused my eyes on the spot where his voice came from. "Not until you tell me what happened to Tally and the kits." _**GROWL!**_ My stomach gave away my hunger. Darn it. There was no way he'd take that seriously now.

But he did. A low growl echoed of the walls of the tunnel. "Fine. If you have to know…" He settled back down to lay beside me. "I had another cat take the kits to Scourge. He'll probably assign them to cats like he did with you. As for Tally, he's still alive. Just a little bloody. You did manage to do quite a bit of damage before he got the best of you. I put him in his place for now. From now on, you'll stay away from him if you know what's best for you."

I nodded. "I… I suppose I owe you one." It made me feel better knowing that he had made Tally pay when she couldn't. What would I do without Timber?

The scent of the meat made my tongue water until I couldn't take it anymore. I tore into the kill. My hungry stomach pushed me on. Timber chuckled softly. Wait! He chuckled! I nearly dropped the meat in surprise. He never laughed.

"That reminds me," he said. I could hear him shift around, then something clattered across the stone. "I believe this is yours."

Lightning flashed once more, illuminating a bloody tooth. "Isn't that Tally's tooth?" I didn't understand.

"Yes," Timber said, curling up. "You knocked it from him, therefore it's your trophy. It's a sign that you bested him in battle."

"But I didn't win," I said, sinking low. The kill seemed to stick in my throat. "How can I take this as a trophy if I lost."

Timber tucked his nose under his tail. "Others will just think you conquered another cat. Nobody will know. Trust me. Do you think I got all these teeth on my collar from a fair fight?" He did have a lot of teeth. "Now I suggest you get some sleep. It will help with that head wound. I still expect you to do well at training tomorrow. We'll be out as soon as the rain clears up." Same old Timber.

"All right," I said, finishing up the last morsels of meat. "I won't let you down, Timber."

"I know," he mewed. "I might even show you how to wear and sharpen that tooth tomorrow." He ended with a big yawn. "Good night, Ice."

I curled up myself. The tooth glinted in the dim light. My first trophy. "Goodnight," I whispered. I remembered Father looking down at me every time he visited. For once, Timber seemed just like Tigerclaw. "I promise to make you proud."

 **I think that will be it for her kit hood. If I tried to do anything else, it would just get repetitive. Especially now that she has her first tooth. If you guys want to read more about some raids, a couple more teeth, even a few more training sessions, tell me before next week. Otherwise, when you next see Ice she will be 9 moons old. ;)**


	14. A Meeting

Moons passed. I was no longer a kit. I was still smaller than many cats, but at least I wasn't a kit. My claws could draw blood. I was getting better.

Life continued as it had for the first few weeks in Bloodclan. Timber and I would train to learn new things about battle. Sometimes I would fight Striker. Sometimes I would win. More often, Striker would win and I'd be stuck in my den until after I had healed a little.

Scourge sent us on more raids. I was getting good at them. Stealing kits became easy. I didn't always like it, but at least it was easy. When a kit didn't behave and play the game, I'd knock their teeth out the way Timber would show me. Nine moons old and I already had almost enough teeth to cover three paws. As for Tally, I almost never saw him. When I did, it was alway in passing, him shooting me one of those scary smiles.

I never saw any of the kits I stole again. Not until now, when Timber was taking me somewhere secrete. Somewhere for something he kept saying was "special."

"Hurry, Ice. We have to meet the others," Timber shouted. He was walking at that ridiculous pace again. At least by now I could keep up with him.

"I'm coming. Can't you tell me why he have to go to the deepest part of twoleg place?" He shook his head, refusing to answer. We were rounding a fence when I felt something slam into my side. Furious, I rounded on my attacker to see a younger tabby tom standing there growling.

"Why you!" I leaped on top of them, my claws ripping into his fur. He clawed back. We went down in a writhing mess of claws and teeth.

"Let that cat have it, Crash. Make her bleed," came a voice. The young tabby kicked out, catching me in the stomach.

"Oof." I stumbled backwards. This wasn't going to be good…. for him. Quick to counter, I lifted a paw and slammed it into the side of his head before he could react. His body collapsed beneath me, and I stood panting over him.

"Good job, Ice," Timber's voice came from behind me. He sounded disinterested.

"You good for nothing piece of rubbish," another tom grunted. This one was bi-colored, with a short tail and torn ear. A collar with as many teeth as Timber's hung loosely on his neck. He kicked the tabby with a front paw.

"Looks like you need to train him better, Snipe," Timber said.

The older cat, Snipe, started to chuckle, low and calm. "It appears I do. Can't let Scourge think I'm not doing a better job of training kits than you. Perhaps I'm not hard enough." He leaned over and gave a swift kick to the smaller tom's ribs. "Get up, you lazy oaf."

The little tom jerked to the side and coughed. He blinked a few times, then forced himself up on shaky paws. "Y-yes Snipe."

Timber snorted. His tail tapped me on the back. "In case you haven't figured it out yet, Ice, this is Snipe and Crash. They are our…."Clanmates."' He said the word scathingly. Must be bad news.

"What are they doing here," I growled, eyeing Snipe. Any cat with that many teeth had high standing with Scourge. "Looks like they should be out working on Crash's inability to fight."

Crash lifted a lip but I ignored him.

Snipe smiled. "You haven't told her, Timber?"

My mentor opened his mouth to speak but the little tom, Crash, cut him off before he could start. "Scourge is going to check out all the mentors and trainees to see how well we're doing. Not that a stupid she cat like you would know."

"Can I fight him again, Timber," I hissed, crouching low. This little furball was going to regret those words. "I'll show him who's the stupid one." Crash flinched and pulled back towards Snipe. I smiled. He can't back up his words with tooth and claw.

Timber's tail whacked me on the ears before I could pounce. "Don't be ridiculous. We don't have time."

I rubbed a paw over my stinging ears. "But-"

He rolled his eyes and started walking down a nearby alley. "Maybe when we're done, but right now I suggest we don't keep Scourge and Bone waiting."

"Okay," I said, slightly disappointed, and bounded after him. I could feel Snipe and Crash's eyes on me as we left.

There were more cats here than I've seen in my life! The alley's end was completely encircled by stiffly sitting cats. Smaller ones sat directly in front of larger ones. Trainees and their mentors.

I was sitting directly in front of Timber. He shuffled his paws impatiently. Scourge and Bone had yet to show up.

My eyes drifted over the line of cats. All of them appeared younger than me. "Hey… Timber?"

"What," he growled.

I didn't dare look back at him. "Where did all these cat's come from?"

He leaned down next to me and pointed with a paw. "You're such a fuzz for brains. Don't you recognize that cat?" He pointed again at a cat at my side. "Or that one?"

I squinted my eyes. The did seem familiar. The one next to me glanced around nervously, revealing a scar on the other side of her jaw. Could it be? My head whipped to the other direction to look at the other kit Timber had pointed out. It was a largish brown tabby with fearless eyes.

I knew them. The she-cat was a kit I had taken my first tooth from (on purpose) on my third raid. The tom was the first kit I met on my first raid. The one that wasn't afraid. This must have been why we were stealing them.

"But they are-" My meow was cut off by a yowl. Scourge pushed his way through the crowded alley to the front of us. Behind him came Bone and, surprisingly, Striker. Their eyes flashed coldly as they smiled down on us. They knew they were better than us. Well… at least us trainees. How I hated all three of them.

"Welcome," Scourge mewed cooly. He started pacing slowly, ever so slowly, around the circle of cats. "And I suppose I should congratulate you young cats. Out of all the new recruits to Bloodclan, you are the only ones strong enough to be worthy of the Bloodclan name." He paused in front of me. I held his gaze. Just like when I joined. His mouth twitched. "Hm… Where others like you died in the attempt, you all rose to the occasion." He continued on his way down the line. "Which is why a reward is in order."

At those last few words, everyone's ears pricked. Trainees and mentors. I felt Timber stiffen behind me. I was excited. A reward! Paws were buzzing in excitement. Scourge almost never addressed anyone other than his elite and Bone, let alone reward any cat. What could it be? Food? A dog's tooth?

Scourge finished circling. He nodded at Bone. The big tom brushed against Striker, who looked like she was going to melt. What was up with those two? Were they….

"We have decided that in three moons time, those of you that can prove yourself will be allowed to join Scourge's guard. His greatest fighters. You shall be considered elite!"

 **Oh MAN! It feels so good to post again. Sorry about the three week break. I've been trying to post for so long now. Blame bad internet connection. I think it's fixed now, but if not I'll have to move back to my "every Tuesday is a new chapter" schedule.**

 **As for the story, now we're really getting into the "plan." If you've read The Traveler, then you may know this doesn't go well. ;)**

 **Am also putting up 2 new stories for pokemon.** **A Night's Echo** **and** **Mystery Dungeon: Breaking Away.** **Go ahead and check them out sometime and tell me where I might be going wrong. XD**


	15. Love

The cats around us started to file out of the alleyway. The sound of excited mews as trainees chattered to the mentors reached my ears. I stayed silent though. Part of the Elite. Why did the idea terrify me? This was what I had wanted. And what was with Striker?

"Come on," Timber brushed past me. His lips twitched in a small smile. "If you're going to impress them, then we better get back to training."

'C-can I have a second," I asked. "I want to talk to Striker really quick." That was one question I could find an answer to, at least.

His claws clicked as he looked at me questioningly. "Fine. Be quick about it. We'll meet by your nest when you get finished."

I nodded. "Meet you there." With that, I turned and bounded through the crowd of cats. She had to be here somewhere. I turned and turned. A flash of light grey fur caught my eye. There! The cat's seemed to part for me as I pushed myself towards her. She was standing close to Bone, whispering in his ear. He was smiling widely.

"Striker," I called.

She turned in surprise. When she saw me, her eyes hardened harshly. "Oh! It's the useless little furball," she growled. "If you're asking for help catching Scourge's favor, then just buzz off. I'd never help you."

Stuck up waste of space. "No," I growled back, making sure to lift my lip in a snarl. "Like a cat like you would be of any help."

"How dare you." Do you know who I am?" She was more pompous than ever. Must be from all the time she was spending with Bone.

"Annoying. That's what you are." A spark of anger appeared in her eye. Heh. Good. I hit a nerve.

"If you two are gonna fight, just get it over with," Bone said with a yawn. "I wanted to go back to the nest."

"Go on ahead without me," Striker said, glaring at me. I held her gaze. Not daring to look away first. I'd stare her down until the end of time, just like I would have with Scourge when I first joined Bloodclan.

Bone shrugged and sauntered away. "What do you want, you little mouse," Striker taunted. "Want to fight again like we did when we were training together? Go ahead and attack first. I'll rip you open and toss you aside in the end. Just like I did every other time."

I gritted my teeth. Get ahold of yourself, Ice. It took a little effort, but I managed to hold back. My fur fell, and my face relaxed. I put on a bored air. "I'm not here for a fight. I'm simply curious. Where have you been, and what's with you and Bone always being together."

She got a weird look on her face, then burst into laughter. That caught me off guard. "You really are an idiot," she laughed. "I guess there's no way for you to know for sure what it's like though. You're still practically a kit. Stupid kit at that." She sat down and started licking a paw. "Me and Bone are mates now. And mates spend time together. Not wasting time with useless scraps of fur."

"Mates!?" I never knew that's how they felt about each other. Sure, they spent a lot of time together lately, but he was constantly criticizing her whenever I saw them. If that's what it's like to have a mate, then I don't want one.

She nodded. "That's right."

"But you're not much older than me," I pushed. "How can you already have a mate? And with Bone, of all cats."

She smiled and whisked her tail to the side. "Jealous, eh?"  
"I'm not jealous." Like I'd ever want Bone. He was mean and bossy.

"You should be," she purred. "He knows a strong cat when he sees one. That's why he chose me."

"Are you sure he doesn't just have a bunch of she cats and never told you about the rest of them," I taunted. "I heard him and Scourge do that so they can just have a bunch of kits." It was a complete lie, but anything to ruffle Striker's fur the wrong way was worth it.

"NO! He doesn't even want kits, thank goodness," she growled. Her eyes shone, then her voice dipped and became crooning. "Poor Ice. You're just upset because no one loves you."

Her words hit me like a blast of lightning. I sat there stunned. She… she was right. But she couldn't be. Could she? Mother and Father were gone. For all I knew, they could be dead. All I had left was Timber. He took care of me, but he didn't love me. Not even the kind of love friends in Father's stories shared. Why would he? I was an assignment he was given by Scourge. He HAD to take care of me.

Striker noticed the look on my face. "Oooh. Looks like I'm right. Well, I suppose it can't be helped. The world just wouldn't care if you, let's say, disappeared." With that, she turned and left the way Bone left.

Jerk.


	16. Learn to Kill or Love

The next day, me and Timber were training. Well… that's not the best word for it. You see, we weren't doing the normal lessons. Instead, we were prowling twolegplace on the search for stray cats to attack. He said if I'm going to get into the elite, I was going to have to know how to fight all sorts of cats. Not just kits, queens, and the occasional stupid hero that tried to get in our way.

My tortoiseshell paws were already stained red from the handful of fights I'd already started. So far, I didn't have any fresh injuries.

A ginger tabby cat ran away yowling as I raked my claws down his side. I let him go, turning and padding back to Timber.

"Not bad," he rasped. He licked a paw and drew it over his ears, bored. I scooped up the tooth I knocked out of the tabby. My first adult tooth since Tally.

"But next time," he continued, "pull them back. Show no mercy. You've yet to kill a cat. It would be best if you used a kill shot on anything other than rats before Scourge comes to see whether or not you are worthy."

His words made me drop the tooth for a moment. "I d-don't know if I'm ready for th-that yet." The words felt bitter on my tongue. I was ashamed that I was terrified of something that Timber made out to seem so simple. But the fear of killing was greater than the shame.

His eyes hardened. "Nonsense. You've attacked and defeated cats much larger than you, and won with ease. You can kill. Sharpen your teeth. We're going to the rubbish piles."

I gulped. "I'm going to kill a cat at the rubbish piles?"

The rubbish piles were where the most desperate cats go for food. Any cat that went there was considered too dangerous to fight, because they were already in fear for their survival. I had been there a few times myself when hunting wasn't enough.

He nodded and stood. Sparks lit the ground where the teeth on his claws scraped the stone. "Yes. Think of it as the ultimate test." Then he turned and started walking down the alleyway.

I ran to keep up. "B-but you told me to avoid those cats."

His eye glinted, but he stared ahead. He wouldn't look at me. "Yes. I did. That was back when you were a kit. Now you're fully grown. If you can't handle yourself now, then you weren't worth the training."

Ouch. My heart dropped. Striker's words came back to me. _Poor Ice. You're just upset because no one loves you._ That's right. Timber didn't really care about me. But he wasn't a bad cat. Maybe…

"Hey... Uh, Timber?" My voice came out like a squeak.

This time he glanced back at me. A scowl was clear on his face. Ugh. I'm such an idiot. "What?"

There was no going back now. I took a deep breath. "I was wondering, did you ever love a cat?"

He froze in his tracks so suddenly, I practically fell face first on the thunderpath when I tried to stop. His face was stony. Not happy, or angry like I thought he would be. Just blank.

"Why." His voice was as blank as his face. I was in so much trouble.

The words came flying out of my mouth before I knew what I was saying. "I was just wondering. I mean, Striker was talking about love the other day, and when I was younger Tally-"

"I told you never to mention Tally again," he snapped. His eyes tore through me like daggers.

I snapped my mouth closed. I felt like a kit again, quaking in fear at his harshness. Shivers ran down my spine. "I'm sorry," I whispered.

Timber gritted his teeth. "Here in Bloodclan, when you love something you better be prepared to lose it."

He turned sharply and ran down the rest of the alley. "Now hurry up. I'm not waiting on you."

The fear that came over me disappeared. I was more confused than ever. My legs still shook a little as I ran after him. Maybe it was some sort of after shock making them shake. Not that it mattered.

* * *

"Finish him!" Timber's cry reached my ears.

I was locked in a grapple with a scrawny black tom. He was bigger than me, but at least his ribs were more visible than mine. Fresh blood oozed down my white pelt from various nasty wounds. The tom looked just as bad.

"I can't - oof," I cried as the cat shot a hind foot up and hit me square in the stomach. My tooth covered claws tightened around his shoulders and we both went down. I coughed, spitting up blood.

"Ice! You have to finish him." Timbers voice was hard, but it cracked near the end. I'm in worse trouble than I thought.

Just as the tom reached forward to bite at my throat, I heaved with both of my back legs. They caught him square in the chest and sent him tumbling down the rubbish pile to the stone path below.

I smiled. Finally. Using my covered claws to steady myself, I worked my way down the pile to where the cat lay panting. When he saw me, he pushed against the ground desperately in an attempt to stand up. His futile efforts only pushed him away a mouse length or two.

I heard Timber sigh. "You know what to do." He seemed... almost happy. But I wasn't. I felt sick looking down at the tom. Fear and hate blazed in his eyes. Eyes that I was going to make dull.

"I-I can't." More blood splattered from my mouth as another set of coughs rattled me.

Footsteps sounded as Timber worked his way towards me. "What do you mean? You know how to do the move. You've practiced it hundreds of times."

Now I planted my feet and stared Timber down. "You're right Timber. I can. That's not what I meant. I mean that I won't."

His gaze hardened. "What?"

"I won't kill him."

He looked off to the side, furrowing his brow. "Ice, You know that when in battle-"

"Other cat's will kill me," I cut him off. "And that I have to beat them to the punch. I know. You've told me. But I'm not going to kill. I don't want to. If they can run, let them run."

Timber wouldn't turn back to me. A quick look at the black tom below me showed me that he was watching, wide eyed and confused. "Go," I flicked my tail and turned away, ready to run. "I'm sorry."

I had only gone one step when claws pierced my haunches. I went down, yowling. Before I could turn to fight, the claws were lifted. My eyes flicked back to see Timber hauling the black tom off of me by the scruff. Rage burned in his eyes as the tom screeched and flailed.

Before my eyes, Timber twitched his jaw. _CRACK!_ The tom went limp in his grasp.

He had saved me again.

Timber spat out the body. Blood dripped from his grey muzzle. "I teach you what I know because I know what happens. All cats fight the same. If you don't want to listen, fine. Just know that you won't live long that way."

He turned and started to stalk away. I struggled back to my feet. "Timber!"

My voice echoed down the alley. He froze. "Remember what I said about love, Ice? How you better be prepared to lose what you love? Forget I said that. That was one lesson I really was wrong about. What I should have said was, when you care about something, you have to always fight to protect it. And as soon as you fail, you will lose it."

His shadow passed over me as he took off running. I didn't follow him. Not this time.

 **Ok. So I know quite a few of you weren't happy about the whole, "Nobody loves Ice," sort of thing. I was just trying to build up to this chapter. Though Timber doesn't say it, I think you can get how he feels about her. If not, then I made it to confusing and I'm a failure at life. XD**

 **I hope that makes things a little better for now. At least until I post the next chapter, "First Kill." And if any of you have read "The Traveler" yet, then you'll know exactly what's going to happen. Yup. I'm that evil. ;)**


	17. First Kill

My nest warmed as the sun shone down on it. Even though it kept me shaded, I still felt its heat rise up beneath my bedding. It felt good.

That's right. I was hiding away in my nest. It was already the day after Timber killed that tom, and I still couldn't face him. Looked like he wouldn't be coming to see me either. It was already sun high and he still hadn't come by. I wasn't complaining.

I burrowed my nose deeper into my fur. I could still see that tom's lifeless eyes. See the disappointment in Timber's. Feel my own glued to the ground after I realized my mistake. I wasn't ready to kill, but I wasn't ready to be killed either.

The confusion was gnawing at me when a shadow slipped in front of my nest's entrance. "Ice. Come out. Now."

My ears shot up. I knew that voice, and it wasn't Timber. "Why should I?" I strained forward to hear the visitor.

Blue eyes opened and shone at the entrance. "Because I am your leader, and I told you to."

I sighed and stood. As much as I hated dealing with Scourge, I couldn't refuse an order. Why was he here though? Usually he sent Bone for whatever came up. The den was filled with the _click clicking_ of my tooth covered claws as I left my cozy nest. "What do you want?"

The small tom flicked his tail. "Follow me."

Strange, but I obeyed. We walked down my alley towards the spot where Scourge and Bone nest. The entire time we walked, Scourge stared straight ahead. He didn't even glance at me when he spoke.

"Do you remember the meeting? How Bone told everyone that you cats in training will be given an opportunity to join my guard?"

I nodded. A flicker of excitement rose in my belly. "Do you mean-"

"I spoke to Timber last night," he continued in a cold voice, cutting me off. The excitement died. What had Timber said? He must have told Scourge about the tom. How I couldn't kill.

"He told me how… exceptional you are. How you have managed to win in fights against cats twice your size. How you almost managed to kill a cat last night." My heart sank. Timber had told him. His white tail tip twitched. "In fact, he had nothing but good things to say about you. The only problem is… I need cats that are capable of finishing. Not afraid to get your paws bloody. Of course, it may have just been circumstance as to why you haven't taken a life yet, but since you haven't killed a cat yet, I decided I need to test you before I let our star pupil rise in Bloodclan."

We stopped. I gulped. I didn't like where this was going.

We had stopped at a crossroad between Scourge's alley, and the rubbish place. Cats were milling about at the edge of the rubbish place. All of them wore teeth. I recognized Crash and Snipe, Striker and Bone, and at the back of the group, I could have sworn I saw Talley's amber eyes flashing.

"So go ahead," Scourge whispered menacingly. "Prove it. Show me you are stronger than your mentor." I panicked and turned to see him slam his paws into my side. I stumbled forward with the shove. The other cats broke into cheers.

A hiss sounded in front of me. "What are you doing?" The cats parted to reveal Timber, bloodied and thrashing, being dragged out into the middle of the crowd. Fresh cuts ran up and down his sides, and the teeth on his collar and claws had been ripped away.

I was horrified. I sat there stunned as the cats dragging him dropped him and ran before he could catch them with his claws.

"Here's your chance to prove yourself, Ice," Scourge's mew echoed over the jeering of the crowd. "Your mentor has grown old and weak. Useless. He couldn't even fight to keep us from holding him here. You can have the honor killing him. If you fail, both of you will die."

"You scum," Timber spat at the small black cat. "Coward!" His eyes were blazing. He looked from me, to Scourge and back again. I was in between the two, and Timber wasn't sure about me. The thought made my heart ache.

Scourge smiled. "Me? Coward? You're the one who's afraid to fight the very cat you taught. What is she to you other than an assignment."

Timber growled but turned away from Scourge.

"Timber," I mewed. Was this really happening. I couldn't. "I-"

"Save it," Timber said, turning to me. He planted his feet on the ground and turned to me. His eyes flashed. "It's time you show everyone what I have seen in you for moons. Don't you dare hold back, because I will give everything I have to win." He had a smile on his face.

That was it then. This was really happening. I blinked back tears. "Alright. Alright. You're on!"

We both let out a battle screech and took off running straight at each other. The fight for our lives had begun.

 **Sorry this was late. Now we are getting somewhere, though. For those of you who read The Traveler, please no Spoilers in the reviews. I know for a fact a few people that read this haven't read it yet. ;)**


	18. Proud

What had I done? What had I done!?

Timber was lying on the ground. Blood covered both of our pelts, but it was his bright, wise eyes that were starting to fade.

"Nice shot," he rasped, then burst into a fit of coughing. Blood spilled from his mouth… and the gaping hole in his neck. "Al… always knew…. y..y..you would make me…." His head dropped with a THUNK onto the ground. "Proud." The last word, no, his last word came out as a whisper. Timber's eyes glazed over and his side no longer rose with the feeble attempt to breath. He was gone.

I couldn't even remember what I did. How I did it. There was a blank space in my memory. Not that I wanted to remember.

I felt numb. I had killed Timber. You would think that I would have been horrified or disgusted at myself. Maybe even bitter or sad. But I wasn't. I felt nothing. Maybe I was in shock.

I think I was dead inside.

The crowd of cats around me was silent. Nobody thought I could do it. Not long ago, Timber had been one of Bloodclan's best. I was just his small, weak little trainee.

Scourge broke the silence. "Congratulations, Ice. You have proved your strength and loyalty." He stepped away from the crowd of cats. Bone followed, closely watched by Striker.

I gave them all a blank stare. How was I supposed to respond?

Scourge's blue eyes flashed. "You shall have a place among Bloodclan's greatest at my side. We shall talk about it more at my nest tonight." He was practically smiling as he looked me up and down. "But for now… you should take a rest."

"Are you sure about that," Bone asked, looking worriedly from me to Scourge.

"I'm sure," he said, lifting his tail high and flicked it, signaling the cats around us. "Come. Let's give her a chance to heal." He turned and glided out of the trash place. Bone gave a rueful look back at where I stood before following him. Striker leaped to his side immediately and started licking Bone's shoulder. Bone let her, but he looked bored and a little frustrated. As for the other cats, they slowly followed suit. All of them kept their eyes locked on me as they walked past.

The last to leave was a certain dark grey tom with amber eyes and a wide smile. Tally. He watched me much more closely than the others, if that was even possible. As he walked past, he bumped into my side with his shoulder. "Looks like the little she-cat is on her own now."

Nothing. None of the usual anger or fear came to me when he spoke. There was only nothing. I stood there alone for a little bit, staring down at Timber's body. "Hmf." I snorted and turned towards the alley's exit.

Every step was hard. One useless hind leg dragged behind me, and my paws were slippery with blood. I was pretty sure from the amount of blood in my eyes that there was a few scratches on my forehead, and I was pretty sure the ear Scourge tore open when I first came had been torn even deeper. My white pelt was crisscrossed and spotted with red. Almost half of it was my blood.

Despite all the injuries, there wasn't much pain. It was more like a buzzing throughout my body. Still… when I finally reached my nest I couldn't help but collapse.

Things started to look a little blurry. I didn't win. I lost. I lost the fight. Timber's pain and everything he hated about this place was gone for him. I was jumping headfirst into it all. I was going to be part of the guard like he was.

Timber had taught me one last thing that day. Nothing I did really mattered to the monsters in this "clan." Timber didn't matter. He got old so they replaced him with me. My injuries didn't matter. If I died, there would be another cat to fill my place. Other cats didn't matter. If I killed, everything would go on like it always did.

"Nothing really matters. Nice lesson," I laughed to myself. I sat there laughing for a while. More than anything else, I was certain of one thing and one thing alone.

I didn't want to care about anything. Not myself. Not others. Not anymore.

Too bad I was too weak to do that right, either.

 **Sorry It's so short. Couldn't bring myself to describe the battle. But yes, I'm working on this again. Probably nobody left who wants to read it, but I don't leave a story unfinished. I just couldn't keep up with my schedule anymore, so I'll be doing this as I feel like it. Hopefully you guys don't hate me for it. There's going to be a bit of a time skip, so be prepares. ;)**


	19. The Plan

"Hurry up and finish, Ice. The others are waiting."

The warm rush of blood flowed over my paws as I slit the throat of the weakling I was fighting with my reinforced claws. "Shut up, Brick. I'm almost done."

I could hear the tom snort in frustration behind me, but he said nothing more. Good. Now if only he could leave me alone.

The cat beneath me jerked. Their body rattled with one last gasp. I wasn't going to wait until they expired, so I turned and walked over to Brick.

He seemed annoyed, but glanced back at the cat, now silent. "What was that for?"

Now I snorted. "Caught them stealing food from my nest. They wouldn't run away. Just sat there as I attacked. Even after I gave them a chance to run."

He shrugged, ginger tail twitching. "Fine. Now let's go."

"I'm coming." I didn't even bother to wash the blood off of my paws. Not that Scourge would mind. Or anyone else I was about to see, for that matter.

I had lost track of how many moons had passed since I passed Scourge's little "Test". Only three others made it to the top by playing his little games. Snapper, a slightly older black and white tom who didn't have much going on upstairs, Crash, Snipe's trainee, and Willie, the tabby tom from my first kitnapping. Neither had to kill their mentor like I did.

Other's had risen to the top with deceit, like Tally, Snake, and Ice. Yes, there is another Ice. Usually, there's no problem understanding which of us someone's talking about. When we are in the same alley or thunderpath, I simply respond to 'you,' or in Bone's case, 'kit.' Even if I wasn't a kit anymore. The brothers, Snake and Ice, joined a few moons ago. They already had Scourge's favor.

Those of us in his elite honestly didn't do much. Except for Bone, who was always at the leader's side, we were given a piece of twolegplace to watch over and report on every so often. It was up to us to steal kits, fight off trespassers, and survive. Nothing new there.

If anything had changed, it was how often we saw Scourge. Every night, we had to report our findings and "progress." If we managed to steal kits, we were to hand them over to him directly. If we killed a cat, we were to tell him. If he were to enter our piece of land, we were to come guard him. If he called a meeting, we were to come running.

Looks like I had to fulfill two of those duties at once.

Everyone was already sitting in Scourge's alley. They sat close in a circle, talking amongst themselves with their heads held low. They all looked up as me and Brick approached.

"Nice of you to join us," Bone growled."What took you so long to get the kit, Brick?"

Striker leaned over his shoulder to get a better look at me. Unlike myself, she was one of the few cats in Bloodclan that toms would give a second look. Her slick grey pelt was almost untouched by scars and wounds, her ears were nick free, and her normally slender form was enough to lull anyone that didn't know her into a false security. Not that Bone would let anyone get close to her. Lately, though, she had been getting fat, and her movements were slower.

The grey she cat curled her tail and laughed. "She's covered in blood, and not a scratch on you. Looks like you had to punish her. Why didn't you just finish her?" Yes, moons later and she still liked to torture me.

Brick flicked his tail and sat down on the left side of Scourge. "Yeah right," he chuckled. "She was in the middle of a fight when I showed up. Had to wait for her to kill the cat before she could move her tail."

Snapper and Crash exchanged excited looks, and Snake and Ice seemed to sit a little taller. Snipe and Willie looked bored. Those two didn't get seem to get excited about little fights.

Nor did Scourge. "Who was the cat?" His voice steady and cold.

I took my seat next to crash and ran my tongue over the red stained paws. "A kittypet. One of the ones from the moor side of twolegplace. Old ginger tabby tom with a blue collar."

He flicked a black ear. "I know the tom. Useless to us. Very well." He turned away. "I've called you all here because there are going to be some changes in Bloodclan."

My paw dropped. If my fight had been interesting to some of the cats, then this made everyone reel in surprise. Everyone except Tally, Striker, and Bone. Chances were, he had already told Bone and Striker told her brother.

"There will be strangers coming into our territory," the leader continued. "An old member of Bloodclan has come with strangers. Cats from the forest with plans that can help Bloodclan."

"That's ridiculous," Brick spat, cutting him off. "Why would they help us?"

Blue fire burned behind Scourge's eyes. "They wish to form an alliance to drive their enemies out in exchange for territory."

Murmuring broke between the cats. Beside me, Crash licked his lips. He leaned over and whispered to me. "Do you really think we're going to fight, Ice?"

My skin crawled. "Fighting with forest cats?" Scourge wanted to extend his reach. My claws shot in and out, clicking the teeth that covered them against the stoney ground. Did we really have to include more cats in this mess of a way of life? I'd much rather live my life and move on.

Scourge had heard me. He nodded, the fire slowly dieing in his gaze. "Don't worry. We won't be honoring the agreement." He lifted his head high. "The forest cats are fools. They want Bloodclan to do their dirty work for a measly patch of land. But Bloodclan is greater than that. We will take the entire forest and all the prey in it as our own!"

Cheers broke out among us. Everyone looked pleased. I forced a smile onto my face. It was best to act like the rest. Chattering broke out amongst the others. Snake and Ice were exceptionally loud, making sure to praise the black tom.

"That's a wonderful idea," Snake crowed.

The other Ice nodded vigorously. "Those cats won't see it coming."

Crash was chattering away next to me. I wasn't really paying attention, though. Scourge had started to talk again, and everyone went silent. "Me and Bone are going to meet with them a few times to discuss battle plans. From this day forward, if you run into a stranger, you must question them before you attack."

"Tell that to the kit," Striker cackled, her tail wrapping tighter around her paws. "She's still got blood on her paws."

"At least I can fight my own battles," I hissed back, pulling my paws close in sudden embarrassment. "I don't need a tom to fight for me." Bone shot me a look that could kill.

Her smile dropped. Something shadowed her face for a heartbeat. So fast that I wasn't even sure I saw it. Something that looked a lot like fear. "You little-"

"Nobody is to attack a stranger," Scourge said again with a warning voice. Striker snapped her mouth shut. I pulled my paws back up to my mouth to finish cleaning. "Question them first. If they say they are a clan cat, then you are to bring them here. Understand?"

Everyone nodded. "Good. When the time comes, you will follow me into the forest and we will take what is ours. Until then, get as many cats as you can ready to fight."

"But Scourge," a voice started softly. Snipe, who had for the most part been quiet the entire meeting, had spoken up. "What if the clan cats find out?"

Scourge looked thoughtful for a moment before his hard stare returned. "They won't find out. The only ones who will know of the real plan is everyone here. You will only tell the rest of Bloodclan what we are going to tell the visitors. That Bloodclan will go to the forest to fight."

His voice held a steely edge. A warning. It was clear that if any of us leaked the real plan, we would regret it.

Snipe nodded, satisfied.

The other Ice laughed. "A foolproof plan. Couldn't have thought of a better one myself."

A cold smile twitched on the end of Scourge's lips. His white tipped tail twitched. "You all are dismissed."

 **And now we're getting to the battle. This might be fun. ;)**


End file.
